If any one is hungry, let him eat at home; so that your coming together may not lead to judgement. The other matters I will deal with whenever I come.

For this reason I would have you understand that no one speaking under the influence of The Spirit of God ever says, "Jesus is accursed," and that no one is able to say, "Jesus is Lord," except under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

For just as the human body is one and yet has many parts, and all its parts, many as they are, constitute but one body, so it is with the Church of Christ.

Were the foot to say, "Because I am not a hand I am not a part of the body," that would not make it any the less a part of the body.

Or were the ear to say, "Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body," that would not make it any the less a part of the body.

It is also impossible for the eye to say to the hand, "I do not need you;" or again for the head to say to the feet, "I do not need you."

and those which we deem less honorable we clothe with more abundant honor; and so our ungraceful parts come to have a more abundant grace, while our graceful parts have everything they need.

that there might be no disunion in the body, but that all the members might entertain the same anxious care for one another's welfare.

And by God's appointment there are in the Church--first Apostles, secondly Prophets, thirdly teachers. Then come miraculous powers, and then ability to cure diseases or render loving service, or powers of organization, or varieties of the gift of 'tongues.'

For our knowledge is imperfect, and so is our prophesying;

For the present we see things as if in a mirror, and are puzzled; but then we shall see them face to face. For the present the knowledge I gain is imperfect; but then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

And so there remain Faith, Hope, Love--these three; and of these the greatest is Love.

Be eager in your pursuit of this Love, and be earnestly ambitious for spiritual gifts, but let it be chiefly so in order that you may prophesy.

And so with you; if with the living voice you fail to utter intelligible words, how will people know what you are saying? You will be talking to the winds.

Therefore, seeing that you are ambitious for spiritual gifts, seek to excel in them so as to benefit the Church.

Otherwise, if you bless God in spirit only, how shall he who is in the position of an ungifted man say the 'Amen' to your giving of thanks, when he does not know what your words mean?

but in the Church I would rather speak five words with my understanding--so as to instruct others also--than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue.

Accordingly if the whole Church has assembled and all are speaking in 'tongues,' and there come in ungifted men, or unbelievers, will they not say that you are all mad?

If there is speaking in an unknown tongue, only two or at the most three should speak, and they should do so one at a time, and one should interpret;

For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged:

Was it from you that God's Message first went forth, or is it to you only that it has come?

If any one deems himself to be a Prophet or a man with spiritual gifts, let him recognize as the Lord's command all that I am now writing to you.

But what I am I am by the grace of God, and His grace bestowed upon me did not prove ineffectual. But I labored more strenuously than all the rest--yet it was not I, but God's grace working with me.

But if Christ is preached as having risen from the dead, how is it that some of you say that there is no such thing as a resurrection of the dead?

But, in reality, Christ *has* risen from among the dead, being the first to do so of those who are asleep.

For just as through Adam all die, so also through Christ all will be made alive again.

But this will happen to each in the right order--Christ having been the first to rise, and afterwards Christ's people rising at His return.

But some one will say, "How can the dead rise? And with what kind of body do they come back?"

Foolish man! the seed you yourself sow has no life given to it unless it first dies;

and as for what you sow, it is not the plant which is to be that you are sowing, but a bare grain, of wheat (it may be)

an animal body is sown, a spiritual body is raised. As surely as there is an animal body, so there is also a spiritual body.

And as we have borne a resemblance to the earthy one, let us see to it that we also bear a resemblance to the heavenly One.

For so it must be: this perishable nature must clothe itself with what is imperishable, and this mortality must clothe itself with immortality.

Therefore, my dear brethren, be firm, unmovable, busily occupied at all times in the Lord's work, knowing that your toil is not fruitless in the Lord.

As to the collection for God's people, what I have directed the Churches of Galatia to do, you must do also.

On the first day of every week let each of you put on one side and store up at his home whatever gain has been granted to him; so that whenever I come, there may then be no collections going on.

For I do not wish to see you on this occasion merely in passing; but if the Lord permits, I hope to remain some time with you.

If Timothy pays you a visit, see that he is free from fear in his relations with you; for he is engaged in the Master's work just as I am.

As for our brother Apollos, I have repeatedly urged him to accompany the brethren who are coming to you: but he is quite resolved not to do so at present. He will come, however, when he has a good opportunity.

And I beseech you, brethren--you know the household of Stephanas, how they were the earliest Greek converts to Christ, and have devoted themselves to the service of God's people--

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.

Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God--and our brother Timothy: To the Church of God in Corinth, with all God's people throughout Greece.

He comforts us in our every affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction by means of the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

For just as we have more than our share of suffering for the Christ, so also through the Christ we have more than our share of comfort.

And our hope for you is stedfast; for we know that as you are partners with us in the sufferings, so you are also partners in the comfort.

For as for our troubles which came upon us in the province of Asia, we would have you know, brethren, that we were exceedingly weighed down, and felt overwhelmed, so that we renounced all hope even of life.

He it is who rescued us from so imminent a death, and will do so again; and we have a firm hope in Him that He will also rescue us in all the future,

while you on your part lend us your aid in entreaty for us, so that from many lips thanksgivings may rise on our behalf for the boon granted to us at the intercession of many.

It was because I entertained this confidence that I intended to visit you before going elsewhere--so that you might receive a twofold proof of God's favour--

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

So that you may now take the opposite course, and forgive him rather and comfort him, for fear he should perhaps be driven to despair by his excess of grief.

Now when I came into the Troad to spread there the Good News about the Christ, even though in the Lord's providence a door stood open before me,

We are; for, unlike most teachers, we are not fraudulent hucksters of God's Message; but with transparent motives, as commissioned by God, in God's presence and in communion with Christ, so we speak.

Do you say that this is self-recommendation once more? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you or from you?

For all can see that you are a letter of Christ entrusted to our care, and written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the ever-living God--and not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts as tablets.

If, however, the service that proclaims death--its code being engraved in writing upon stones--came with glory, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily on the face of Moses because of the brightness of his face--a vanishing brightness;

Nay, we have renounced the secrecy which marks a feeling of shame. We practice no cunning tricks, nor do we adulterate God's Message. But by a full clear statement of the truth we strive to commend ourselves in the presence of God to every human conscience.

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 God who said, "Out of darkness let light shine," is He who has shone in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory, which is radiant on the face of Christ.

always, wherever we go, carrying with us in our bodies the putting to death of Jesus, so that in our bodies it may also be clearly shown that Jesus lives.

For we, alive though we are, are continually surrendering ourselves to death for the sake of Jesus, so that in this mortal nature of ours it may also be clearly shown that Jesus lives.

For in this one we sigh, because we long to put on over it our dwelling which comes from Heaven--

Yes, we who are in this tent certainly do sigh under our burdens, for we do not wish to lay aside that with which we are now clothed, but to put on more, so that our mortality may be absorbed in Life.

So we have a cheerful confidence, and we anticipate with greater delight being banished from the body and going home to the Lord.

For we must all of us appear before Christ's judgement-seat in our true characters, in order that each may then receive an award for his actions in this life, in accordance with what he has done, whether it be good or whether it be worthless.

We are not again commending ourselves to your favour, but are furnishing you with a ground of boasting on our behalf, so that you may have a reply ready for those with whom superficial appearances are everything and sincerity of heart counts for nothing.

For if we have been beside ourselves, it has been for God's glory; or if we are now in our right senses, it is in order to be of service to you.

Therefore for the future we know no one simply as a man. Even if we have known Christ as a man, yet now we do so no longer.

So that if any one is in Christ, he is a new creature: the old state of things has passed away; a new state of things has come into existence.

We are to tell how God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not charging men's transgressions to their account, and that He has entrusted to us the Message of this reconciliation.

On Christ's behalf therefore we come as ambassadors, God, as it were, making entreaty through our lips: we, on Christ's behalf, beseech men to be reconciled to God.

And you also we, as God's fellow workers, entreat not to be found to have received His grace to no purpose.

On the contrary, as God's servants, we seek their full approval--by unwearied endurance, by afflictions, by distress, by helplessness;

as obscure persons, and yet are well known; as on the point of death, and yet, strange to tell, we live; as under God's discipline, and yet we are not deprived of life;

I do not say this to imply blame, for, as I have already said, you have such a place in our hearts that we would die with you or live with you.

but also by the fact that he had felt comforted on your account, and by the report which he brought of your eager affection, of your grief, and of your jealousy on my behalf, so that I rejoiced more than ever.

For if I gave you pain by that letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it then. I see that that letter, even though for a time it gave you pain, had a salutary effect.

For this reason we feel comforted; and--in addition to this our comfort--we have been filled with all the deeper joy at Titus's joy, because his spirit has been set at rest by you all.

For however I may have boasted to him about you, I have no reason to feel ashamed; but as we have in all respects spoken the truth to you, so also our boasting to Titus about you has turned out to be the truth.

With earnest entreaty they begged from us the favour of being allowed to share in the service now being rendered to God's people.

They not only did this, as we had expected, but first of all in obedience to God's will they gave their own selves to the Lord and to us.

This led us to urge Titus that, as he had previously been the one who commenced the work, so he should now go and complete among you this act of beneficence also.

Yes, just as you are already very rich in faith, readiness of speech, knowledge, unwearied zeal, and in the love that is in you, implanted by us, see to it that this grace of liberal giving also flourishes in you.

I am not saying this by way of command, but to test by the standard of other men's earnestness the genuineness of your love also.

But in this matter I give you an opinion; for my doing this helps forward your own intentions, seeing that not only have you begun operations, but a year ago you already had the desire to do so.

but that, by equalization of burdens, your superfluity having in the present emergency supplied their deficiency, their superfluity may in turn be a supply for your deficiency later on, so that there may be equalization of burdens.

And more than that, he is the one who was chosen by the vote of the Churches to travel with us, sharing our commission in the administration of this generous gift to promote the Lord's glory and gratify our own strong desire.

For we seek not only God's approval of our integrity, but man's also.

As to the services which are being rendered to God's people, it is really unnecessary for me to write to you.

Still I send the brethren in order that in this matter our boast about you may not turn out to have been an idle one; so that, as I have said, you may be ready;

for fear that, if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we--not to say you yourselves--should be put to the blush in respect to this confidence.

And God is able to bestow every blessing on you in abundance, so that richly enjoying all sufficiency at all times, you may have ample means for all good works.

May you be abundantly enriched so as to show all liberality, such as through our instrumentality brings thanksgiving to God.

For the service rendered in this sacred gift not only helps to relieve the wants of God's people, but it is also rich in its results and awakens a chorus of thanksgiving to God.

while they themselves also in supplications on your behalf pour out their longing love towards you because of God's surpassing grace which is resting upon you.

Is it outward appearances you look to? If any man is confident as regards himself that he specially belongs to Christ, let him consider again and reflect that just as he belongs to Christ, so also do we.

For they say "His letters are authoritative and forcible, but his personal presence is unimpressive, and as for eloquence, he has none."

We do not exceed our due limits, and take credit for other men's labours; but we entertain the hope that, as your faith grows, we shall gain promotion among you--still keeping within our own sphere--promotion to a larger field of labour,

and shall tell the Good News in the districts beyond you, not boasting in another man's sphere about work already done by him.