New King James Version

New Living Translation

Greeting

Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

Greetings from Paul

This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother Sosthenes.

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To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are [a]sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

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I am writing to God’s church in Corinth,a to you who have been called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus,b just as he did for all people everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.

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Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

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May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

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Spiritual Gifts at Corinth

I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus,

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Paul Gives Thanks to God

I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus.

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that you were enriched in everything by Him in all [b]utterance and all knowledge,

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Through him, God has enriched your church in every way — with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge.

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even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed [c]in you,

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This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true.

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so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

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Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

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who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

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He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns.

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God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

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God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

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Sectarianism Is Sin

Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all [d]speak the same thing, and that there be no [e]divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

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Divisions in the Church

I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters,c by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.

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For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are [f]contentions among you.

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For some members of Chloe’s household have told me about your quarrels, my dear brothers and sisters.

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Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.”

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Some of you are saying, “I am a follower of Paul.” Others are saying, “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Peter,d” or “I follow only Christ.”

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Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

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Has Christ been divided into factions? Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not!

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I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,

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I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,

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lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name.

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for now no one can say they were baptized in my name.

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Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other.

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(Oh yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I don’t remember baptizing anyone else.)

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For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.

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For Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to preach the Good News — and not with clever speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power.

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Christ the Power and Wisdom of God

For the [g]message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

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The Wisdom of God

The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.

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For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”

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As the Scriptures say,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise
and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”e

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Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the [h]disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

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So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish.

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For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

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Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.

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For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom;

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It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom.

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but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a [i]stumbling block and to the [j]Greeks foolishness,

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So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.

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but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

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But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles,f Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.

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Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

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This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.

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Glory Only in the Lord

For [k]you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many [l]noble, are called.

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Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthyg when God called you.

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But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;

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Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.

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and the [m]base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are,

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God chose things despised by the world,h things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important.

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that no flesh should glory in His presence.

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As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

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But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God — and righteousness and sanctification and redemption —

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God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin.

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that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”

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Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the LORD.”i

Parallel

New King James Version

New Living Translation

1 Corinthians 1

1 Corinthians 1