But each one [is raised up] in his own turn: Christ as the firstfruits [See verse 20]; then those who are Christ's [i.e., believers], when He returns.

As a last enemy, death, is to be destroyed;

For, as it says, He has put all things under his feet. But when he says, All things are put under him, it is clear that it is not said about him who put all things under him.

Otherwise, if there is no such thing as a resurrection, what is the meaning of people getting baptized on behalf of their dead? If dead men do not rise at all, why do people get baptized on their behalf?

[For that matter] why are we [running such risks and putting ourselves] in danger [nearly] every hour [if there is no resurrection]?

I protest, brethren, as surely as I glory over you--which I may justly do in Christ Jesus our Lord--that I die day by day.

If, to speak as a man, I have fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it to me, if the dead rise not? Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die.

Awake up righteously, and sin not; for some are ignorant of God: I speak to you as a matter of shame.

But someone will ask, "How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have when they come back?"

foolish as you are, the grain you sow, is not revived except it die.

And as for what you sow—you are not sowing the future body, but only a seed, perhaps of wheat or another grain.

But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body.

All flesh is not the same [Note: The word "flesh" here refers to the material composition of matter, and in no way suggests anything sinful, as it does in many other places in Paul's writings]. But mankind has one [kind of] flesh; animals have another kind; birds have another; and fish [still] another.

it is sown a natural body [mortal, suited to earth], it is raised a spiritual body [immortal, suited to heaven]. As surely as there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body.

As it is written, "The first man Adam was made a living soul," and the last Adam was made a quickening spirit:

As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.

And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

this I say, my brethren, because the body, as it is at present, cannot possess the kingdom of God; and what is corruptible, can't enjoy incorruptibility.

in a split second, as quickly as the twinkle of an eye, when the last trumpet blows. For the trumpet will blow and dead people [i.e., believers] will be raised up, never to decay again, and [the living] will be changed [i.e., physically and spiritually].

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye.

Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

And, as soon as I arrive, whomsoever ye shall approve by letters, these, will I send, to bear away your favour unto Jerusalem:

And if it is worth while for me also to make the journey, they shall go as my companions.

Now I will come unto you, as soon as I have passed through Macedonia, - for I do pass through Macedonia,

But I do not plan to see you yet, as I will [only] be passing through. For I am hoping to stay with you for some time [i.e., in the future], if the Lord permits.

for I have a great and promising opportunity here, as well as many opponents.

Now if Timotheus come, see that he may be with you without fear: for he worketh the work of the Lord, as I also do.

So allow no one to treat him with disdain [as if he were inconsequential]. But send him off [cordially, and speed him on his way] in peace, so that he may come to me, for I am expecting him [to come along] with the other brothers.

As touching our brother Apollos, I greatly desired him to come unto you with the brethren: but his will was not at all to come at this time; but he will come when he shall have convenient time.

Let everything you do be done in love [motivated and inspired by God’s love for us].

Now, brothers and sisters, you know about the household of Stephanus, that as the first converts of Achaia, they devoted themselves to ministry for the saints. I urge you

to be subject to such leaders [treating them with courtesy and respect], and to everyone who helps in the work and labors [for the benefit of yourselves and the church].

It is a joy to me that Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus have now arrived, because what was wanting so far as you are concerned they have supplied.

They have refreshed my spirit as well as yours. So fully acknowledge such men and deeply appreciate them.

If any one loves not the Lord as a friend, let him be anathema Maran atha.

PAUL an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and brother Timotheus, to the church of God at Corinth as well as to all the saints throughout the whole of Achaia:

who comforts us in all our suffering, so that we may be able to comfort others in all their suffering, as we ourselves are being comforted by God.

For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.

But if, on the one hand, we are enduring affliction, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if, on the other hand, we are receiving comfort, it is for your comfort which is produced within you through your patient fortitude under the same sufferings as those which we also are enduring.

And our hope of you is stedfast, knowing, that as ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation.

For we do not wish you to be ignorant, brethren, as to our tribulation which happened to us in Asia, that we were excessively pressed beyond our power, so as to despair even of living.

Nay, we had, as we still have, the sentence of death within our own selves, in order that our confidence may repose, not on ourselves, but on God who raised the dead to life.

So deadly was the peril from which he saved me, as he will save me again! It is on him that I have set my hope that he will save me again.

as you also help us by your prayers for us. Then many people will thank God on our behalf because of the favor shown us through the prayers of many.

For we are writing to you nothing different from what we have written before, or from what indeed you already recognize as truth and will, I trust, recognize as such to the very end;

As also ye have acknowledged us in part, that we are your rejoicing, even as ye also are ours in the day of the Lord Jesus.

I intended to take you on my way to Macedonia, and to visit you again on my way back from Macedonia, so as to be sped by you on my journey to Judaea.

As this was my plan, where, pray, did I show any fickleness of purpose? Or do you think that my plans are formed on mere impulse, so that in the same breath I say 'Yes' and 'No'?

But as God is true, our word toward you was not yea and nay.

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was proclaimed among you by me, [and] Silvanus [i.e., the same as Silas] and Timothy, was not "yes" and "no" [i.e., both our message and Jesus Himself were not contradictory], but with Him, it was "yes" [i.e., Jesus consistently spoke the truth].

for as many as are promises of God, in him are the Yes, and in him the Amen, for glory to God through us;

But He who is making us as well as you stedfast through union with the Anointed One, and has anointed us, is God,

it is He who has also put His seal on us [that is, He has appropriated us and certified us as His] and has given us the [Holy] Spirit in our hearts as a pledge [like a security deposit to guarantee the fulfillment of His promise of eternal life].

Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.

not that we rule [like dictators] over your faith, but rather we work with you for [the increase of] your joy; for in your faith you stand firm [in your strong conviction that Jesus of Nazareth—the Messiah—is the Son of God, through whom we obtain eternal salvation].

But, so far as I am concerned, I have resolved not to have a painful visit the next time I come to see you.

And I write this to you in order that when I come I may not receive pain from those who ought to give me joy, confident as I am as to all of you that my joy is the joy of you all.

For I was in great trouble and distress of mind when I wrote you, and I shed many tears as I did it, yet it was not to hurt your feelings, but to make you realize the extraordinary affection I have for you.

Now if any one has caused sorrow, it has been caused not so much to me, as in some degree--for I have no wish to exaggerate--to all of you.

For to this end also I have written, that I might know, by putting you to the test, if as to everything ye are obedient.

When you forgive a man, I forgive him too. For anything I had to forgive has been forgiven on your account, and as in the very presence of Christ,

So as to prevent Satan from taking advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us spreads and makes evident everywhere the sweet fragrance of the knowledge of Him.

I live for God as the fragrance of Christ breathed alike on those who are being saved and on those who are perishing,

to the last-named an odor of death predictive of death, and to the others an odor of life predictive of life. And for such service as this who is competent?

For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.

Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?

Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

But, such confidence as this, have we, through the Christ, towards God.

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;

who also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

But if the ministry of death, in letters engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the sons of Israel could not look intently at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face, fading as it was,

Having, then, such hope as this, great openness of speech, do we use; -

And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;

And we have given up the secret things of shame, not walking in false ways, and not making use of the word of God with deceit; but by the revelation of what is true, as before God, we have the approval of every man's sense of right and wrong.

in whom the god of this present age has blinded their unbelieving minds so as to shut out the sunshine of the Good News of the glory of the Christ, who is the image of God.

For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus'sake.

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give us the Light of the knowledge of the glory and majesty of God [clearly revealed] in the face of Christ.

but this treasure is lodg'd in such earthen vessels as we are, that the exceeding efficacy of it may appear to be from God, and not from us.

persecuted but not abandoned, struck down but not destroyed ??10 wherever I go, I am being killed in the body as Jesus was, so that the life of Jesus may come out in my body:

We always carry around in our [physical] bodies the [threat of] dying, as Jesus did [i.e., the apostles were constantly exposed to impending danger and death], so that the life of Jesus [i.e., His virtue, courage, faithfulness, etc.] may be demonstrated in our bodies [i.e., in the way we live] also.

for as long as I live I shall be exposed to death for the sake of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest by the preservation of our mortal life.

As a result, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;

All this is for your sake so that, as his grace spreads, more and more people will give thanks and glorify God.

Therefore, as I said, we do not lose heart. No, even though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

For our short and light affliction is working out for us an infinite and eternal weight of glory, as we aim not at the things which are visible, but invisible:

So long as we are not looking out for the visible things, but for the invisible; for, the visible things, are temporary, whereas, the invisible, are age-abiding.

For we know that if our earthly house, which is but as a tent, were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked.

Indeed, we groan while we are in this tent, burdened as we are, because we do not want to be unclothed but clothed, so that mortality may be swallowed up by life.

Now He who has made us and prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave us the [Holy] Spirit as a pledge [a guarantee, a down payment on the fulfillment of His promise].

Therefore, we are always confident, and we know that as long as we are at home in this body we are away from the Lord.

Therefore indeed we have as our ambition, whether at home [in the body] or absent [from the body], to be acceptable to him.

For we [believers will be called to account and] must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be repaid for what has been done in the body, whether good or bad [that is, each will be held responsible for his actions, purposes, goals, motives—the use or misuse of his time, opportunities and abilities].

Therefore, because we know the fear of the Lord, we seek to persuade people. We are completely open before God, and I hope we are completely open to your consciences as well.

We are not again commending ourselves unto you, but'speak as giving you occasion of glorying on our behalf, that ye may have wherewith to answer them that glory in appearance, and not in heart.