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

to the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who being sanctified by Christ Jesus, are saints by that vocation, to all that any where invoke the name of Jesus Christ, who is both their Lord and ours.

in your being enriched by him in every gift, with all that light and knowledge,

so that you will be deficient in no gift; during your expectation of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

and God will confirm you to the end, that ye may be unaccused in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

for he, who has called you to the communication of his son Jesus Christ our Lord, will make good his promise.

Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to maintain all the same doctrine, to suffer no divisions among you; but to be perfectly united in the same mind, and in the same judgment.

for it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent."

for whereas the world, with all their learning, did not distinguish the characters of his divine wisdom, in his works, it pleased God to save those who believe, by preaching, which they counted folly.

while the Jews require signs, and the Greeks seek wisdom:

for this divine doctrine, as foolish and weak as men may think it, far surpasses all their wisdom, and baffles all their power.

However, what we preach is wisdom, to those who are thoroughly instructed: yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who will soon come to nothing.

this is what God has revealed to us by his spirit: for the spirit penetrates into all things, even the profound counsels of God.

but they are all expos'd to the judgment of the spiritual, whilst he himself is not subject to the judgment of any man.

while one cries I am Paul's disciple, and another, I am Apollo's, are ye not vicious?

will be expos'd. for the time of tryal will show it: it shall be discovered by the fire, which will put each sort of work to the test.

if that man's work should be burnt, he will suffer loss: but should he himself escape, it will be as out of the fire.

for the wisdom of this world is folly, in the eye of God: as it is written, "he surprizes the wise in all their artifices."

therefore, let no one glory in men: for all are yours:

all are yours; and you are Christ's; and Christ is God's.

therefore suspend your judgment till the Lord comes, who will bring to light the secrets of darkness, and expose the counsels of mens hearts: and then shall every man have his due reward from God.

we are made fools for our attachment to Christ, while you, who are christians too, still pass for the wise: we are in poverty, but you are in power: you meet with esteem, but we find contempt.

'tis for this end I have sent you Timothy, who is my dear disciple, and a faithful christian, who will inform you how I behave my self in every church where I teach the gospel of Christ.

but if the Lord pleases, I will visit you very soon; and then I shall try, not what these boasters can say, but what they can do:

we have it from all quarters, that incest is practis'd among you, and such as is not among the Gentiles, that of a man's having his father's wife.

Your levity is very indecent: don't you know that a little leaven infects the whole mass?

those that are without, God will judge. therefore expel the libertine from your community.

When any controversy arises among you, will any one presume to appeal to the Gentiles, and not to Christians?

beside, you are absolutely in the wrong in going to law with one another at all: why don't you rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer loss?

Are all things lawful for me? however, all things are not expedient: are all things lawful for me? however, I will not be a slave to any.

for as God hath raised up the Lord, so will he likewise raise us up to partake of his own power.

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.

for I wish that all men were as I myself am: but every man hath his proper gift from God, some one way, and some another.

but if the infidel will separate, let him go: a brother or a sister is not inslaved in such cases. but God has called us to peace; for how do you know,

Whatever condition God has allotted to any man, let him go on in the same state he was in when he became a christian: this I give as a standing rule to all churches.

not that it is a sin for you to marry; nor is it so if a virgin marry; but they that do, will be troubled for their relations, and that I would prevent.

This I say, brethren, because the time is coming, when they who have wives will be as those that have none;

and they that possess this world, as those that can't make an ill use of it. for the scene of this world is continually shifting. I would have you free from anxiety.

but he that has been steady in his purpose, and finds no necessity to alter it; if he is a master of his passion, and is heartily determin'd to keep his virginity, it is well.

so that he who marries, does well; but he who lives single, may have less trouble.

but she will be happier, if she remain a widow, in my opinion: and I think the divine spirit suggests the same.

Now as to things offered to idols, 'tis certain that the knowledge you all pretend to have, swells you with pride, but 'tis charity that edifieth.

for tho' there are several titular deities, both in heaven and on earth: such as the whole crowd of gods, and lords among the Gentiles;

yet to us there is but one God, the father, from whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.

for if any man see you who have a just notion of idols, sitting at table in their temple, will not the person who is wrong in his notions be incouraged to eat what is offered to idols, tho' contrary to his own opinion?

wherefore if my eating makes my brother offend, I will never eat flesh rather than make my brother offend.

have not we the liberty to take a christian woman with us in our travels, as well as the rest of the apostles, as the brothers of the Lord, and Cephas did?

now if I do this willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, it is a dispensation of trust which must be discharged.

for tho' I am independent of all men, yet have I subjected myself to all, that I might gain the more.

to the weak I became as weak, that I might gain the weak: I became all things to all men, that I might save all sorts of men.

and I do all for the gospel's sake, that I may share in the benefits thereof.

You know, that in a race, tho' all run, but one receives the prize: so run, that you may obtain.

I would not have you ignorant, my brethren, that all our fathers were under the Cloud, all passed thro' the sea:

and were all baptized into the Mosaical institution by the cloud, and by the sea;

they all eat the same spiritual meat,

and all drank the same spiritual drink: (for they drank of what flowed from the spiritual rock: and that rock was Christ.)

but with the greater part God was not well pleased: for their carcasses were strown in the wilderness.

All these things happened to them for examples: and are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come.

you have met with no trials yet, but such as are common to men: and God who is faithful, will not suffer you to be tempted above your strength; but will with the temptation make a way to escape, by enabling you to bear it.

for the bread being one, as many as we are, we are one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.

are all things lawful for me? yet all things are not expedient: are all things lawful for me? yet all things do not edify.

whether therefore you eat or drink, or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God.

thus I endeavour to be acceptable to all men in all things, not seeking my own advantage, but that of others, so as they may be saved.

now I commend you, brethren, for remembring all my orders, and for keeping the rules I delivered to you.

a woman may as well have the tonsure, as not wear her veil: the one is as indecent as the other.

for as the woman was taken from the man, so man is born of the woman: and all are from God.

for there must be factions among you, whereby it will appear who among you are the approved.

for in eating every one strives to take his own supper first, and while one is hungry, another is surfeited.

and if any one is press'd with hunger, let him eat at home; that ye may not otherwise meet with punishment. as for other matters, I will set them in order when I come.

and there are different operations, but it is the same God who performs them all in every one.

but all are wrought by one and the same spirit, distributing to every one in particular, as he thinks fit.

For as the body is one, tho' it has many members, and all the members of that one body, tho' many, are one body: so also is the body of Christ.

for by one spirit we have all been baptized, to be form'd into one body, whether Jews or Gentiles, slaves or free; and have been all made to drink of one spirit.

if the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? if the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling?

but if they were all one member, where would be the body?

so that if one member suffer, they all suffer with it: or if one be honoured, they partake of it.

are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles?

have all the gifts of healing? do all speak divers languages? do all interpret?

and tho' I should have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and tho' I had all the faith necessary to remove mountains, and had no benevolence, it would signify nothing.

and tho' I distribute my whole substance to the poor, and give my body to be burned, and have not social affection, it profits me nothing.

is not self-interested, is not easily provoked, nor suspects any ill;

it excuses all things, believes what is favourable, hopes for the best, and suffers the worst.

Social affection will never fail: but as for prophecies, they shall be out of use; as for languages, they shall cease; as for knowledge, it shall vanish away.

now we do but indirectly see the faint images of things; but then the objects themselves will be before our eyes; now I have a partial knowledge, but then shall I know, even as I myself am known.

and now faith, hope, social virtue, these three will all remain; but the most permanent of the three is social virtue.

I wish you all had the gift of languages, but rather that you expounded: for greater is he that expounds, than he that speaks unknown languages, except he interpret what he says, that the church may be edified by it.

in like manner, if you express yourselves in words of obscure signification, you may as well talk to the wind, for how shall any comprehend you?

what then is to be done? why, I will pray by the spirit, but my prayer shall be intelligible: I will sing by the spirit, but my hymn shall be intelligible.

thy thanksgiving indeed is right, but the other is not all edified by it.

I thank God, I speak more languages than you all:

in the law it is written, " with men of other tongues and other lips, will I speak unto this people: and yet for all that will they not hear me, saith the Lord."

when therefore the whole church is assembled, and all speak different languages, if such as are either unlearned, or are unbelievers should come in, will they not say you are all mad?

but if you all expound, and an unbeliever, or one unlearned come in, he is examin'd by all, he is tryed by all:

the secrets of his heart become manifest; and so falling down on his face, he will worship God, and declare that God is certainly amongst you.

what is then to be done, my brethren? when you come together, one of you with a psalm, another with a doctrine, another with a strange tongue, another with a revelation, another with an interpretation: let the whole be done to edification.

for ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may receive instruction and exhortation.

for God is not the God of confusion, but of peace, in all christian assemblies.

but if he will be blind, I leave him to his blindness.

let all things be done with decency, and without disorder.

by which also you will be saved, if you so retain it as I preached it to you, unless you have believed without sufficient grounds.