To God’s church at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus and called as saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord—both their Lord and ours.

I always give thanks unto my God, on your account, for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus; that ye are enriched by Him with every gift,

That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;

So that having every grace you are living in the hope of the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ;

and to the very end He will guarantee that you are vindicated at the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For God is faithful, by whom ye are called unto the fellowship of his son Jesus Christ our Lord.

Because it has come to my knowledge, through those of the house of Chloe, that there are divisions among you, my brothers.

in order that no one may say that you are baptized in my name.

For the word of the cross seems foolish to those who are on the way to destruction; but to us who are on the way to salvation it is the power of God.

Sage, rabbi, skeptic of this present age??here are they all? Has not God made foolish the philosophy of the world?

Seeing that the Jews make request for signs, and the Greeks are looking for knowledge:

we are preaching the Christ who was crucified -- a message that is a trap-stick to the Jews and nonsense to the Greeks,

Yet to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is God’s power and God’s wisdom,

For the foolishness of God is wiser than men: And the weakness of God is stronger than are men.

Brothers, consider your calling: Not many are wise from a human perspective, not many powerful, not many of noble birth.

On the contrary - the foolish things of the world, hath God chosen, that he might put to shame them who are wise, and, the weak things of the world, hath God chosen, that he might put to shame the things that are mighty,

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:

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who is made by God unto us wisdom,

But, of him, are, ye, in Christ Jesus, who hath been made wisdom unto us, from God, - both righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

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:

rather, we are setting forth a wisdom that came from God, once a covered secret but now uncovered, which God marked off as His plan for bringing us to glory.

But, as the Scripture says, they are: "Things which eye has never seen and ear has never heard, and never have occurred to human hearts, which God prepared for those who love 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.

But, a man of the soul, doth not welcome the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him, and he cannot get to know them, because, spiritually, are they examined;

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

for how can he, that does not know the mind of the Lord, instruct another? but as for us, we are acquainted with the mind of the Lord.

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?

What then is Apollos? and what is Paul? They are but servants who gave you the good news as God gave it to them.

Now the planter and the waterer are working for the same end: but they will have their separate rewards in the measure of their work.

For we are workers with God: you are God's planting, God's building.

In discharge of the task which God graciously entrusted to me, I--like a competent master-builder--have laid a foundation, and others are building upon it. But let every one be careful how and what he builds.

If the work of anyone lasts [i.e., if his converts are judged faithful], he will receive a reward [i.e., his converts will constitute part of his reward].

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

If anyone makes the house of God unclean, God will put an end to him; for the house of God is holy, and you are his house.

And again, The Lord has knowledge of the reasonings of the wise, that they are nothing.

So let no one take pride in men. For all things are yours;

Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours;

And you are Christ's; and Christ is God's.

Let us be judged as servants of Christ, and as those who are responsible for the secret things of God.

Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, which will lighten things that are hid in darkness: and open the counsels of the hearts. And then shall every man have praise of God.

But, these things, brethren, have I transferred unto myself and Apollos, for your sakes, that, in us, ye might learn the lesson - Not beyond the things that are written -- ! that ye do not puff yourselves up, individually, for this one against that.

For who makes you a differ, brother? Or what have you that you did not receive? But if you did receive it, why are you boasting as if you had not received it?

For even now you are full, even now you have wealth, you have been made kings without us: truly, I would be glad if you were kings, so that we might be kings with you.

For it seems to me that God has put us the Apostles last of all, as men whose fate is death: for we are put on view to the world, and to angels, and to men.

We are made to seem foolish for Christ, but you are wise in Christ; we are feeble, but you are strong; you have glory, but we have shame.

Even to this hour we are without food, drink, and clothing, we are given blows and have no certain resting-place;

we labor, working with our own hands. When we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it;

When evil things are said about us we give gentle answers: we are made as the unclean things of the world, as that for which no one has any use, even till now.

This I don't write to give you any confusion, but by way of remonstrance, to you who are my dear children.

For this cause, sent I unto you, Timothy, - who is my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, who shall put, you, in mind of my ways which are in Christ Jesus, even as, everywhere, in every assembly, I teach.

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.

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.

In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,

are to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.

Your ground for boasting about such a case is not good. Are you not aware that a little yeast will change the whole lump of dough?

Take away, then, the old leaven, so that you may be a new mass, even as you are without leaven. For Christ has been put to death as our Passover.

I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people??10 not that you are to have nothing whatever to do with the immoral people of the world, any more than with its greedy and grasping people or idolaters, for then you would have to leave the world altogether.

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:

What I meant was that you are not to associate with anyone who is supposed to be a Christian brother, and yet is immoral or greedy or idolatrous or abusive or drunken or grasping??ith such a person you must not even 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;

As for those who are outside, God is their judge. So put away the evil man from among you.

When one of you has a complaint against another, does he dare to take the matter before those who are unrighteous 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?

If then there are questions to be judged in connection with the things of this life, why do you put them in the hands of those who have no position in the church?

but instead, brother goes to law against brother, and that before [judges who are] unbelievers?

Already, indeed, it is an utter defeat for you, that ye are having, law-suits, one with another. Wherefore are ye not rather taking wrong? Wherefore are ye not rather suffering yourselves to be defrauded?

Nay! but, ye, are doing wrong, and defrauding, - and that your brethren.

Do you not know that wrongdoers will not have a share in the kingdom of God? Stop being misled; people who are sexually immoral or idolaters or adulterers or sensual or guilty of unnatural sexual vice

nor theives, nor avaricious people, nor any who are addicted to hard drinking, to abusive language or to greed of gain, will inherit God's Kingdom.

And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our 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.

the meats are for the belly, and the belly for the meats. And God both this and these shall make useless; and the body is not for whoredom, 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.

it cannot be. why, don't you perceive, that where there is such an attachment, they are but as one person? for the scripture says, "they two shall be as one."

Flee fornication. All sins that a man doth, are without the body. But he that is a fornicator, sinneth against his own body.

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;

For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

I now want to reply to the matters you people wrote me about. It is [a] good [idea] for a man not to get married. [Note: The words "to get married" here are "to touch" in the Greek and probably refer to sexual relations within marriage. This advice, not a prohibition, is further explained in verses 26-35].

Now to those people who are not married [Note: This probably refers to all unmarried people, and not just to widowers, as some think], or who are widows, I say it is [a] good [idea] for them to remain like me [i.e., single. See verse

If, however, they are not exercising self-control, by all means let them marry; for marriage is better than the fever of passion.

And to those who are married, I do not command but the Lord. The wife is not to separate from her husband.

But I, not the Lord, say this to the rest of you [Note: Paul now addresses the matter of mixed marriages, a circumstance Jesus never taught about]: If any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she agrees to continue living with him [Note: In these verses Paul addresses a situation where one marriage partner is converted after they are married], he should not divorce her.

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.

Only, as the Lord has given to a man, and as is the purpose of God for him, so let him go on living. And these are my orders for all the churches.

Were you called [while] a slave? Do not let it be a concern to you. But if indeed you are able to become free, rather make use of [it].

Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men.

But, concerning them who are virgin, injunction of the Lord, have I none; yet, a judgment, do I give, as one who hath obtained mercy from the Lord to be, faithful:

Because of the impending crisis I think it best for you to remain as you are.

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.

Of course, if you are actually married, there is no sin in that; and if a maid marries, there is no sin in that. (At the same time those who marry will have outward trouble ??and I would spare you that.)

But I say this, brothers; there is not much time left [i.e., before the crisis arrives in full fury. See verse 26]. From now on those men who are married should live as though they were single.

And for those who are in sorrow, to give no signs of it; and for those who are glad, to give no signs of joy; and for those who are getting property, to be as if they had nothing;

and those who are enjoying the world as though they were not entirely absorbed in it. For the outward order of this world is passing away.

But he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife.