1 Corinthians · Free Bible Version
1 Corinthians 3 Free Bible Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
FBV Free Bible Version
WEB World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)
PT1904 Patriarchal Text 1904 (accented, eBible edition)
1 My brothers and sisters, I couldn't talk with you as spiritual believers, but as worldly people—like baby Christians.
1 Brothers, I couldn’t speak to you as to spiritual, but as to fleshly, as to babies in Christ.
1 Καὶ ἐγώ, ἀδελφοί, οὐκ ἠδυνήθην ὑμῖν λαλῆσαι ὡς πνευματικοῖς, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς σαρκικοῖς, ὡς νηπίοις ἐν Χριστῷ.
2 I gave you milk—I couldn't give you solid food to eat, because you weren't ready for it.
2 I fed you with milk, not with solid food, for you weren’t yet ready. Indeed, you aren’t ready even now,
2 γάλα ὑμᾶς ἐπότισα καὶ οὐ βρῶμα· οὔπω γὰρ ἠδύνασθε. ἀλλ᾽ οὔτε ἔτι νῦν δύνασθε· ἔτι γὰρ σαρκικοί ἐστε.
3 Even now you're not ready for it, because you're still worldly. Since you're still jealous and argumentative, doesn't that show you're worldly, behaving just like ordinary people do?
3 for you are still fleshly. For insofar as there is jealousy, strife, and factions among you, aren’t you fleshly, and don’t you walk in the ways of men?
3 ὅπου γὰρ ἐν ὑμῖν ζῆλος καὶ ἔρις καὶ διχοστασίαι, οὐχὶ σαρκικοί ἐστε καὶ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον περιπατεῖτε;
4 When one of you says, “I follow Paul,” while another says, “I follow Apollos,” doesn't that show you're being so very human?
4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” aren’t you fleshly?
4 ὅταν γὰρ λέγῃ τις, ἐγὼ μέν εἰμι Παύλου, ἕτερος δὲ ἐγὼ Ἀπολλώ, οὐχὶ σαρκικοί ἐστε;
5 Who is Apollos, anyway? And who is Paul? We're just servants through whom you believed. Each of us does the work God gave us to do.
5 Who then is Apollos, and who is Paul, but servants through whom you believed, and each as the Lord gave to him?
5 Τίς οὖν ἐστι Παῦλος, τίς δὲ Ἀπολλὼς ἀλλ᾽ ἢ διάκονοι δι᾽ ὧν ἐπιστεύσατε, καὶ ἑκάστῳ ὡς ὁ Κύριος ἔδωκεν;
6 I did the planting, Apollos did the watering—but it was God who made you grow!
6 I planted. Apollos watered. But God gave the increase.
6 ἐγὼ ἐφύτευσα, Ἀπολλὼς ἐπότισεν, ἀλλ᾽ ὁ Θεὸς ηὔξανεν·
7 So the one who does the planting doesn't count for anything, any more than the one who does the watering. The only one who matters is God who is growing you!
7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.
7 ὥστε οὔτε ὁ φυτεύων ἐστί τι οὔτε ὁ ποτίζων, ἀλλ᾽ ὁ αὐξάνων Θεός.
8 The one planting and the one watering have the same goal, and both will be rewarded according to what they've done.
8 Now he who plants and he who waters are the same, but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.
8 ὁ φυτεύων δὲ καὶ ὁ ποτίζων ἕν εἰσιν· ἕκαστος δὲ τὸν ἴδιον μισθὸν λήψεται κατὰ τὸν ἴδιον κόπον.
9 We are workers together with God—and you are God's field, his building.
9 For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s farming, God’s building.
9 Θεοῦ γάρ ἐσμεν συνεργοί· Θεοῦ γεώργιον, Θεοῦ οἰκοδομή ἐστε.
10 Through the grace of God that he gave to me, I laid down the foundation like a skilled building supervisor. Now someone else is building on it. Whoever does the building needs to watch what they're doing.
10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another builds on it. But let each man be careful how he builds on it.
10 Κατὰ τὴν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν δοθεῖσάν μοι ὡς σοφὸς ἀρχιτέκτων θεμέλιον τέθεικα, ἄλλος δὲ ἐποικοδομεῖ· ἕκαστος δὲ βλεπέτω πῶς ἐποικοδομεῖ·
11 For no one can lay any other foundation than what's already laid—that is Jesus Christ.
11 For no one can lay any other foundation than that which has been laid, which is Jesus Christ.
11 θεμέλιον γὰρ ἄλλον οὐδεὶς δύναται θεῖναι παρὰ τὸν κείμενον, ὅς ἐστιν Ἰησοῦς Χριστός.
12 Those who build on that foundation may use gold, silver, precious stone, wood, hay, or straw—
12 But if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw,
12 εἰ δέ τις ἐποικοδομεῖ ἐπὶ τὸν θεμέλιον τοῦτον χρυσόν, ἄργυρον, λίθους τιμίους, ξύλα, χόρτον, καλάμην,
13 but whatever is used to build with will be exposed. For on the Day of Judgment, fire will reveal it and test it. Everyone's work will be shown for what it is.
13 each man’s work will be revealed. For the Day will declare it, because it is revealed in fire; and the fire itself will test what sort of work each man’s work is.
13 ἑκάστου τὸ ἔργον φανερὸν γενήσεται· ἡ γὰρ ἡμέρα δηλώσει· ὅτι ἐν πυρὶ ἀποκαλύπτεται· καὶ ἑκάστου τὸ ἔργον ὁποῖόν ἐστι τὸ πῦρ δοκιμάσει.
14 Those whose building survives will be rewarded.
14 If any man’s work remains which he built on it, he will receive a reward.
14 εἴ τινος τὸ ἔργον μενεῖ ὃ ἐπῳκοδόμησε, μισθὸν λήψεται·
15 Those whose building is burned up will lose out. They will still be saved, but it will be like passing through fire!
15 If any man’s work is burned, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, but as through fire.
15 εἴ τινος τὸ ἔργον κατακαήσεται, ζημιωθήσεται, αὐτὸς δὲ σωθήσεται, οὕτως δὲ ὡς διὰ πυρός.
16 Don't you know you are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?
16 Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?
16 Οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι ναὸς Θεοῦ ἐστε καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα τοῦ Θεοῦ οἰκεῖ ἐν ὑμῖν;
17 Anyone who destroys God's temple will be destroyed by God, for God's temple is holy, and you are the temple.
17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is holy, which you are.
17 εἴ τις τὸν ναὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ φθείρει, φθερεῖ τοῦτον ὁ Θεός· ὁ γὰρ ναὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἅγιός ἐστιν, οἵτινές ἐστε ὑμεῖς.
18 Don't deceive yourselves. If there's any one of you who thinks they're worldly wise, they should become fools so they can become truly wise!
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinks that he is wise among you in this world, let him become a fool that he may become wise.
18 Μηδεὶς ἑαυτὸν ἐξαπατάτω· εἴ τις δοκεῖ σοφὸς εἶναι ἐν ὑμῖν ἐν τῷ αἰῶνι τούτῳ, μωρὸς γενέσθω, ἵνα γένηται σοφός.
19 This world's wisdom is plain foolishness to God. As Scripture says, “He uses the cleverness of the wise to catch them out,”
19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He has taken the wise in their craftiness.”
19 ἡ γὰρ σοφία τοῦ κόσμου τούτου μωρία παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ ἐστι. γέγραπται γάρ· ὁ δρασσόμενος τοὺς σοφοὺς ἐν τῇ πανουργίᾳ αὐτῶν·
20 and “The Lord knows the arguments of the wise are pointless.”
20 And again, “The Lord knows the reasoning of the wise, that it is worthless.”
20 καὶ πάλιν· Κύριος γινώσκει τοὺς διαλογισμοὺς τῶν σοφῶν, ὅτι εἰσὶ μάταιοι.
21 So don't boast about people. For you have everything,
21 Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours,
21 ὥστε μηδεὶς καυχάσθω ἐν ἀνθρώποις· πάντα γὰρ ὑμῶν ἐστιν,
22 whether it's Paul or Apollos or Peter—or the world, or life, or death, or the present, or the future. You have everything—
22 whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come. All are yours,
22 εἴτε Παῦλος εἴτε Ἀπολλὼς εἴτε Κηφᾶς εἴτε κόσμος εἴτε ζωὴ εἴτε θάνατος εἴτε ἐνεστῶτα εἴτε μέλλοντα, πάντα ὑμῶν ἐστιν,
23 and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.
23 and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
23 ὑμεῖς δὲ Χριστοῦ, Χριστὸς δὲ Θεοῦ.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Apollos
An eloquent Alexandrian Jew, mighty in the Scriptures, who was taught more accurately by Priscilla and Aquila and then ministered in Achaia and at Corinth.
Cited in the guide: Acts 18:24; 1 Corinthians 1:12; 1 Corinthians 3:6
Cross references (23)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Hebrews 5:13; 1 Corinthians 2:14–15; Ephesians 4:13–14; 1 Corinthians 14:20; 1 Corinthians 2:6
- 2 Hebrews 5:11–14; 1 Peter 2:2; John 16:12
- 3 James 3:16; Galatians 5:15; Titus 3:3; Ephesians 4:22–24; James 4:1–2
- 4 1 Corinthians 1:12; 1 Corinthians 3:3; 1 Corinthians 4:6
- 5 2 Corinthians 6:4; 2 Corinthians 6:1; 1 Peter 4:10; 2 Corinthians 3:6; 2 Corinthians 11:23
- 6 1 Corinthians 3:9–10; Proverbs 11:25; 2 Corinthians 10:14–15; Acts 18:4–11; 1 Corinthians 9:1
- 7 John 15:5; Galatians 6:3; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Psalm 115:1; 1 Corinthians 13:2
- 8 Romans 2:6; Psalm 62:12; 2 John 8; John 4:36–38; Matthew 16:27
- 9 1 Peter 2:5; Ephesians 2:20–22; 2 Corinthians 6:1; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Mark 16:20
- 10 1 Corinthians 3:11; Ephesians 2:20; Romans 15:20; Daniel 12:3; Matthew 24:45
- 11 Ephesians 2:20; Isaiah 28:16; 2 Timothy 2:19; Acts 4:11–12; 1 Peter 2:6–8
- 12 2 Timothy 4:3; 2 Timothy 3:7; 2 Timothy 2:20; Colossians 2:18–23; Revelation 21:18
- 13 1 Peter 1:7; Revelation 20:12; 1 Corinthians 3:14–15; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Zechariah 13:9
- 14 Matthew 25:21–23; 1 Corinthians 3:8; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Matthew 24:45–47; Daniel 12:3
- 15 2 John 8; 1 Corinthians 3:12–13; Jude 23; Revelation 3:18; 1 Peter 4:18
- 16 1 Corinthians 6:19; Ezekiel 36:27; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Romans 8:11; Ephesians 2:21–22
- 17 1 Corinthians 6:18–20; Ezekiel 43:12; Numbers 19:20; Ezekiel 7:22; Ezekiel 5:11
- 18 Proverbs 3:5; 1 Corinthians 1:18–21; Galatians 6:3; Isaiah 5:21; 1 Corinthians 8:1–2
- 19 Job 5:13; Psalm 141:10; 1 Corinthians 1:19–20; Romans 1:21–22; Isaiah 44:25
- 20 Psalm 94:11; Colossians 2:8; Romans 1:21; Job 11:11–12; Psalm 2:1
- 21 Romans 8:32; Romans 8:28; Jeremiah 9:23–24; 1 Corinthians 4:6; Revelation 21:7
- 22 Ephesians 4:11–12; Philippians 1:21; 2 Corinthians 4:5; 1 Corinthians 9:19–22; 1 Corinthians 3:5–8
- 23 Galatians 3:29; 1 Corinthians 15:23; John 17:18; John 17:9–10; 1 Corinthians 11:3
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
After having overturned the philosophy which is from without, and cast down all its arrogance, he comes unto another argument. For it was likely that they would say, "If we were putting forth the opinions of Plato, or of Pythagoras, or any other of the philosophers, reason were thou shouldest draw out such a long discourse against us.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 12 (1889)
"For every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down, and cast into the fire;" and "whosoever shall defile the temple of God, him shall God defile."
For where was that charity building upon the "foundation" of humility, "which is Jesus Christ"? Or, when would these books teach me it?
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 1 (1886)
Which Paul showing also in other ways, said, "So then, neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase." From what we have already, then, He urges us in this way: and from examples of other things, by saying, "Behold the fowls of the air." Thus, lest any should say, "we do …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
As then it is His part to plant and to water, so it is thine to bear fruit: it is God's to grant grace, but thine to receive and guard it.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)