Divisions in the Church
1But I, brothers,1 could not address you as aspiritual people, but as bpeople of the flesh, as cinfants in Christ. 2dI fed you with milk, not solid food, for eyou were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3for you are still of the flesh. For while there is fjealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? 4For gwhen one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” hare you not being merely human?
5What then is Apollos? What is Paul? iServants through whom you believed, jas the Lord assigned to each. 6kI planted, lApollos watered, mbut God gave the growth. 7So nneither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8He who plants and he who waters are one, and each owill receive his wages according to his labor. 9For we are pGod's fellow workers. You are God's field, qGod's building.
10rAccording to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled2 master builder I laid a sfoundation, and tsomeone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11For no one can lay a ufoundation other vthan that which is laid, wwhich is Jesus Christ. 12Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13xeach one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed yby fire, and zthe fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, ahe will receive a reward. 15If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, bbut only as through fire.
16cDo you not know that you3 are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? 17If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For dGod's temple is holy, and you are that temple.
18eLet no one deceive himself. fIf anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19For gthe wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, h“He catches the wise in their craftiness,” 20and again, i“The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” 21So jlet no one boast in men. For kall things are yours, 22whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, 23and lyou are Christ's, and mChrist is God's.
A Study in 1 Corinthians, Volume 1
A Firm Foundation 1 Corinthians 1:1–4:21 Series • ID: 14601Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.