1 Corinthians 1

Greeting

¹Paul, called as an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will, and Sosthenes our brother:²

³To the church of God at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called as saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord — both their Lord and ours.⁴

⁵Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.⁶

Thanksgiving

⁷I always thank my God for you because of the grace of God given to you in Christ Jesus,⁸⁹that you were enriched in him in every way, in all speech and all knowledge.¹⁰¹¹In this way, the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you,¹²¹³so that you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.¹⁴¹⁵He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.¹⁶¹⁷God is faithful; you were called by him into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.¹⁸

Divisions at Corinth

¹⁹Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, that there be no divisions among you, and that you be united with the same understanding and the same conviction.²⁰²¹For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers and sisters, by members of Chloe’s people, that there is rivalry among you.²²²³What I am saying is this: One of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.”²⁴²⁵Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in Paul’s name?²⁶²⁷I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,²⁸²⁹so that no one can say you were baptized in my name.³⁰³¹I did, in fact, baptize the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t recall if I baptized anyone else.³²³³For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel — not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ will not be emptied of its effect.³⁴

Christ the Power and Wisdom of God

³⁵For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is the power of God to us who are being saved.³⁶³⁷For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will set aside the intelligence of the intelligent.³⁸

³⁹Where is the one who is wise? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the debater of this age? Hasn’t God made the world’s wisdom foolish?⁴⁰⁴¹For since, in God’s wisdom, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of what is preached.⁴²⁴³For the Jews ask for signs and the Greeks seek wisdom,⁴⁴⁴⁵but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles.⁴⁶⁴⁷Yet to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God,⁴⁸⁴⁹because God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.⁵⁰

Boasting Only in the Lord

⁵¹Brothers and sisters, consider your calling: Not many were wise from a human perspective, not many powerful, not many of noble birth.⁵²⁵³Instead, God has chosen what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen what is weak in the world to shame the strong.⁵⁴⁵⁵God has chosen what is insignificant and despised in the world — what is viewed as nothing — to bring to nothing what is viewed as something,⁵⁶⁵⁷so that no one may boast in his presence.⁵⁸⁵⁹It is from him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became wisdom from God for us — our righteousness, sanctification, and redemption —⁶⁰⁶¹in order that, as it is written: Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.⁶²