1This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother Sosthenes.G3972G2822G652G2424G5547G1223G2307G2316G2532G4988G802I am writing to God's church in Corinth, to you who have been called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.G1577G2316G3588G5607G1722G2882G37G1722G5547G2424G2822G40G4862G3956G1722G3956G5117G1941G3686G2424G5547G2257G2962G5037G846G2532G22573May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.G5485G5213G2532G1515G575G2316G2257G3962G2532G2962G2424G5547
Paul Gives Thanks to God
4I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus.G2168G3450G2316G3842G4012G5216G4012G1909G5485G2316G3588G1325G5213G1722G2424G55475Through him, God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge.G3754G1722G3956G4148G1722G846G1722G3956G3056G2532G3956G11086This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true.G2531G3142G5547G950G1722G52137Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.G5620G5209G5302G1722G3361G3367G5486G553G602G2257G2962G2424G55478He 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.G3739G950G2532G950G5209G2193G5056G410G1722G2250G2257G2962G2424G55479God 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.G2316G4103G1223G3739G2564G1519G2842G846G5207G2424G5547G2257G2962
Divisions in the Church
10I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, 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.G1161G3870G5209G80G1223G3686G2257G2962G2424G5547G2443G3004G3956G3004G846G2532G5600G3361G4978G1722G5213G1161G5600G2675G1722G846G3563G2532G1722G846G110611For some members of Chloe's household have told me about your quarrels, my dear brothers and sisters.G1063G1213G3427G4012G5216G3450G80G5259G3588G5514G3754G1526G2054G1722G521312Some of you are saying, "I am a follower of Paul." Others are saying, "I follow Apollos," or "I follow Peter," or "I follow only Christ."G1161G5124G3004G3754G1538G5216G3004G1473G3303G1510G3972G1161G1473G625G1161G1473G2786G1161G1473G554713Has Christ been divided into factions? Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not!G3307G5547G3307G3361G4717G3972G4717G5228G5216G2228G907G1519G3686G397214I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,G2168G2316G3754G907G3762G5216G1508G2921G2532G105015for now no one can say they were baptized in my name.G3363G5100G2036G3754G907G1519G1699G368616(Oh yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I don't remember baptizing anyone else.)G1161G907G2532G3624G4734G3063G1492G3756G907G1536G24317For 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.G1063G5547G649G3165G3756G907G235G2097G3756G1722G4678G3056G3363G4716G5547G2758
The Wisdom of God
18The 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.G1063G3056G4716G2076G3303G622G3472G1161G2254G4982G2076G1411G231619As the Scriptures say, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent."G1063G1125G622G4678G4680G2532G114G4907G490820So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world's brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish.G4226G4680G4226G1122G4226G4804G5127G165G3471G3780G2316G3471G4678G5127G288921Since 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.G1063G1894G1722G4678G2316G2889G1223G4678G1097G3756G2316G2106G2316G1223G3472G2782G4982G410022It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom.G2532G1894G2453G154G4592G2532G1672G2212G467823So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it's all nonsense.G1161G2249G2784G5547G4717G2453G3303G4625G1161G1672G347224But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.G1161G846G3588G2822G5037G2453G2532G1672G5547G1411G2316G2532G4678G231625This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God's weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.G3754G3474G2316G2076G4680G444G2532G772G2316G2076G2478G44426Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world's eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you.G1063G991G5216G2821G80G3754G3756G4183G4680G2596G4561G3756G4183G1415G3756G4183G210427Instead, 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.G235G2316G1586G3474G2889G2443G2617G4680G2532G2316G1586G772G2889G2443G2617G247828God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important.G2532G36G2889G2532G1848G1586G2316G1586G2532G3588G5607G3361G2443G2673G560729As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.G3704G3361G3956G4561G2744G1799G84630God 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.G1161G1537G846G2075G5210G1722G5547G2424G3739G575G2316G1096G2254G5037G4678G1343G2532G38G2532G62931Therefore, as the Scriptures say, "If you want to boast, boast only about the LORD."G2443G2531G1125G2744G2744G1722G2962
1Corinthians 2
Paul’s Message of Wisdom
2When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, I didn't use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God's secret plan.G2504G80G2064G4314G5209G2064G3756G2596G5247G3056G2228G4678G2605G5213G3142G23162For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified.G1063G2919G3756G1492G5100G1722G5213G1508G2424G5547G2532G5126G47173I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling.G2532G1473G1096G4314G5209G1722G769G2532G1722G5401G2532G1722G4183G51564And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit.G2532G3450G3056G2532G3450G2782G3756G1722G3981G3056G442G4678G235G1722G585G4151G2532G14115I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.G2443G5216G4102G5600G3361G5600G1722G4678G444G235G1722G1411G23166Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten.G1161G2980G4678G1722G5046G1161G3756G4678G5127G165G3761G758G5127G165G26737No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.G235G2980G4678G2316G1722G3466G613G3739G2316G4309G4253G165G1519G2257G13918But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord.G3739G3762G758G5127G165G1097G1487G1063G1097G302G4717G3756G4717G2962G13919That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him."G235G2531G1125G3739G3788G1492G3756G1492G2532G3756G3775G191G2532G3756G305G1909G2588G444G3739G2316G2090G25G84610But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets.G1161G2316G601G2254G1223G846G4151G1063G4151G2045G3956G2532G899G231611No one can know a person's thoughts except that person's own spirit, and no one can know God's thoughts except God's own Spirit.G1063G5101G444G1492G3588G444G1508G4151G444G3588G1722G846G2532G3779G3588G2316G1492G3762G1508G4151G231612And we have received God's Spirit (not the world's spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.G1161G2249G2983G3756G4151G2889G235G4151G3588G1537G2316G2443G1492G5483G2254G5259G231613When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit's words to explain spiritual truths.G3739G2532G2980G3756G1722G3056G442G4678G1318G235G40G4151G1722G1318G4793G4152G415214But people who aren't spiritual can't receive these truths from God's Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can't understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.G1161G5591G444G1209G3756G3588G4151G2316G1063G2076G3472G846G2532G3756G1410G1097G3754G4153G35015Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others.G1161G4152G350G3303G3956G1161G846G350G5259G376216For, "Who can know the LORD's thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?" But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.G1063G5101G1097G3563G2962G3739G4822G846G1161G2249G2192G3563G5547
Psalms 141
141[A psalm of David.] O Lord, I am calling to you. Please hurry! Listen when I cry to you for help!H4210H1732H3068H7121H2363H238H6963H71212Accept my prayer as incense offered to you, and my upraised hands as an evening offering.H8605H3559H6440H7004H4864H3709H6153H45033Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips.H7896H8108H3068H6310H5341H1817H81934Don’t let me drift toward evil or take part in acts of wickedness. Don’t let me share in the delicacies of those who do wrong.H5186H3820H7451H1697H5953H7562H5949H376H6466H205H3898H45165Let the godly strike me! It will be a kindness! If they correct me, it is soothing medicine. Don’t let me refuse it. But I pray constantly against the wicked and their deeds.H6662H1986H2617H3198H7218H8081H5106H7218H8605H74516When their leaders are thrown down from a cliff, the wicked will listen to my words and find them true.H8199H8058H5553H3027H8085H561H52767Like rocks brought up by a plow, the bones of the wicked will lie scattered without burial.H6106H6340H7585H6310H6398H1234H7768I look to you for help, O Sovereign Lord. You are my refuge; don’t them kill me.H5869H3069H136H2620H6168H5315H61689Keep me from the traps they have set for me, from the snares of those who do wrong.H8104H3027H6341H3369H4170H6466H20510Let the wicked fall into their own nets, but let me escape.H7563H5307H4364H3162H5674
Dublin, OH
, to you who have been called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.G1577
