1
Παῦλος κλητὸς ἀπόστολος ⸂Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ⸃ διὰ θελήματος θεοῦ καὶ Σωσθένης ὁ ἀδελφὸς
Paul, a called apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Sosthenes the brother,
first here Christ Χριστός Christos
first here Jesus Ἰησοῦς Iēsous
2
τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ, ⸂ἡγιασμένοις ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, τῇ οὔσῃ ἐν Κορίνθῳ,⸃ κλητοῖς ἁγίοις, σὺν πᾶσιν τοῖς ἐπικαλουμένοις τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ ⸀αὐτῶν καὶ ἡμῶν·
to the assembly of God, sanctified in Christ Jesus, that is in Corinth, called holy ones, with all who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, theirs and ours:
Why this rendering
1Cor.1.2 Observation
Syntactic observation
τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ, ἡγιασμένοις ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, τῇ οὔσῃ ἐν Κορίνθῳ, κλητοῖς ἁγίοις — to the assembly of God, sanctified in Christ Jesus, that is in Corinth, called holy ones. The base text marks the word order with ⸂⸃ — ‘sanctified’ comes before ‘that is in Corinth’ (some manuscripts place it after). Holiness is woven three times into one clause — ἡγιασμένοις (sanctified; perfect passive; the verb of John 17:17), ἁγίοις (holy ones), and the assembly this letter will go on to address. ‘Called holy ones’ (κλητοῖς ἁγίοις) is the phrase of Rom 1:7. ἐκκλησία is ‘assembly’, as in Matt 16:18, Acts 5:11 and Rom 16:1 — the assembly at Corinth is the one the New Testament addresses at greatest length, in this letter and the next.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “assembly” — ἐκκλησία as fixed
Basis As fixed in Matt 16:18, Acts 5:11, Rom 16:1; no later institutional name is imported.
“church”
Basis The familiar word.
Rejected The Ephesian civic assembly of Acts 19:32 and the wilderness assembly of Acts 7:38 are the same word; ‘church’ cannot pass those sites.
Lost in translation
The perfect of ἡγιασμένοις — ‘sanctified’ carries the state but not the tense that says it stands completed.
this edition — none of the nine carries it (measured)
3
χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη ἀπὸ θεοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν καὶ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.
grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4
Εὐχαριστῶ τῷ θεῷ ⸀μου πάντοτε περὶ ὑμῶν ἐπὶ τῇ χάριτι τοῦ θεοῦ τῇ δοθείσῃ ὑμῖν ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ,
I give thanks to my God always concerning you for the grace of God given to you in Christ Jesus,
5
ὅτι ἐν παντὶ ἐπλουτίσθητε ἐν αὐτῷ, ἐν παντὶ λόγῳ καὶ πάσῃ γνώσει,
that in everything you were enriched in him, in all word and all knowledge,
6
καθὼς τὸ μαρτύριον τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐβεβαιώθη ἐν ὑμῖν,
just as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you,
7
ὥστε ὑμᾶς μὴ ὑστερεῖσθαι ἐν μηδενὶ χαρίσματι, ἀπεκδεχομένους τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ·
so that you fall short of no gift of grace, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ;
8
ὃς καὶ βεβαιώσει ὑμᾶς ἕως τέλους ἀνεγκλήτους ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.
who will also confirm you until the end, beyond charge in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9
πιστὸς ὁ θεὸς δι’ οὗ ἐκλήθητε εἰς κοινωνίαν τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν.
God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
10
Παρακαλῶ δὲ ὑμᾶς, ἀδελφοί, διὰ τοῦ ὀνόματος τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἵνα τὸ αὐτὸ λέγητε πάντες, καὶ μὴ ᾖ ἐν ὑμῖν σχίσματα, ἦτε δὲ κατηρτισμένοι ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ νοῒ καὶ ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ γνώμῃ.
Now I exhort you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all say the same thing, and that there be no splits among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same purpose.
Why this rendering
1Cor.1.10 Observation
Syntactic observation
ἵνα τὸ αὐτὸ λέγητε πάντες, καὶ μὴ ᾖ ἐν ὑμῖν σχίσματα, ἦτε δὲ κατηρτισμένοι ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ νοῒ καὶ ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ γνώμῃ — that you all say the same thing, that there be no splits among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and the same purpose. σχίσμα is the word in which the ‘split’ of a garment (Mark 2:21) and the ‘split’ of a crowd (John 7:43) are one (σχίζω, to tear — the verb of the heavens and the curtain); the letter’s first concern is a tearing. κατηρτισμένοι is the verb of Matt 4:21, the disciples ‘mending’ their nets — the picture of repairing what is torn follows straight after the tearing. The Greek runs on the vocabulary of cloth and net; split / be made complete carry only half the thread. The four cries of v.12, ‘I am of …’, are a bare genitive — no word for ‘party’ or ‘side’ is added.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “splits” — as fixed in Mark 2:21 and John 7:43
Basis Garment, crowd and assembly share one word.
“divisions”
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected ‘Dissension’ is διχοστασία’s word (Rom 16:17), and the link to the torn garment of Mark 2:21 is cut.
Lost in translation
σχίσμα (tearing) → καταρτίζω (net-mending, Matt 4:21) — the link of tearing and mending.
this edition — none of the nine carries it (measured)
11
ἐδηλώθη γάρ μοι περὶ ὑμῶν, ἀδελφοί μου, ὑπὸ τῶν Χλόης ὅτι ἔριδες ἐν ὑμῖν εἰσιν.
For it was made clear to me concerning you, my brothers, by those of Chloe, that there are strifes among you.
12
λέγω δὲ τοῦτο ὅτι ἕκαστος ὑμῶν λέγει· Ἐγὼ μέν εἰμι Παύλου, Ἐγὼ δὲ Ἀπολλῶ, Ἐγὼ δὲ Κηφᾶ, Ἐγὼ δὲ Χριστοῦ.
Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” “I of Apollos,” “I of Cephas,” “I of Christ.”
first here Cephas Κηφᾶς Kēphas
13
μεμέρισται ὁ Χριστός; μὴ Παῦλος ἐσταυρώθη ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν, ἢ εἰς τὸ ὄνομα Παύλου ἐβαπτίσθητε;
Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you, or were you baptized into the name of Paul?
14
⸀εὐχαριστῶ ὅτι οὐδένα ὑμῶν ἐβάπτισα εἰ μὴ Κρίσπον καὶ Γάϊον,
I give thanks that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,
15
ἵνα μή τις εἴπῃ ὅτι εἰς τὸ ἐμὸν ὄνομα ⸀ἐβαπτίσθητε·
so that no one may say that you were baptized into my name.
16
ἐβάπτισα δὲ καὶ τὸν Στεφανᾶ οἶκον· λοιπὸν οὐκ οἶδα εἴ τινα ἄλλον ἐβάπτισα.
And I baptized also the house of Stephanas; for the rest, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.
17
οὐ γὰρ ἀπέστειλέν με Χριστὸς βαπτίζειν ἀλλὰ εὐαγγελίζεσθαι, οὐκ ἐν σοφίᾳ λόγου, ἵνα μὴ κενωθῇ ὁ σταυρὸς τοῦ Χριστοῦ.
For Christ did not send me to baptize but to bring good news — not in wisdom of word, so that the cross of Christ might not be made empty.
18
Ὁ λόγος γὰρ ὁ τοῦ σταυροῦ τοῖς μὲν ἀπολλυμένοις μωρία ἐστίν, τοῖς δὲ σῳζομένοις ἡμῖν δύναμις θεοῦ ἐστιν.
For the word of the cross is foolishness to those perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
Why this rendering
1Cor.1.18 Observation
Syntactic observation
Ὁ λόγος γὰρ ὁ τοῦ σταυροῦ τοῖς μὲν ἀπολλυμένοις μωρία ἐστίν, τοῖς δὲ σῳζομένοις ἡμῖν δύναμις θεοῦ ἐστιν — the word of the cross is foolishness to those perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. Both participles are present — ἀπολλυμένοις (perishing; the middle of Rom 2:12), σῳζομένοις (being saved). The text writes both as ongoing, not ‘the lost / the saved’. μωρία comes four times in this chapter (18, 21, 23, and μωρόν in 25), on the root of μωρός (Matt 5:22, 7:26) and μωραίνω (Matt 5:13 ‘become foolish’; in v.20 ‘make foolish’) — English fool- and Korean 어리석- both carry the four. In the quotation of v.19 (Isa 29:14) ἀθετήσω is the verb of Mark 7:9, ‘you set aside the commandment of God’, and σύνεσις is the ‘understanding’ of Mark 12:33. συζητητής in v.20 occurs only here in the New Testament — the person of συζητέω, ‘dispute’ (Mark 8:11).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “those perishing / us who are being saved” — present participles kept
Basis What the text writes as ongoing is not closed as completed.
“the lost / the saved”
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected Both participles are present; a completed form adds a verdict the text does not give.
Lost in translation
μωρία · μωρόν · μωραίνω · μωρός — one root six times in the letter’s first chapter; fool- carries it throughout.
Survives in · this edition — 2 of the nine carry it (this language among them)
19
γέγραπται γάρ· Ἀπολῶ τὴν σοφίαν τῶν σοφῶν, καὶ τὴν σύνεσιν τῶν συνετῶν ἀθετήσω.
For it is written: ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the understanding of the intelligent I will set aside.’
20
ποῦ σοφός; ποῦ γραμματεύς; ποῦ συζητητὴς τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου; οὐχὶ ἐμώρανεν ὁ θεὸς τὴν σοφίαν τοῦ ⸀κόσμου;
Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Did not God make foolish the wisdom of the world?
21
ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐν τῇ σοφίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ οὐκ ἔγνω ὁ κόσμος διὰ τῆς σοφίας τὸν θεόν, εὐδόκησεν ὁ θεὸς διὰ τῆς μωρίας τοῦ κηρύγματος σῶσαι τοὺς πιστεύοντας.
For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was well pleased through the foolishness of the proclamation to save those who believe.
22
ἐπειδὴ καὶ Ἰουδαῖοι ⸀σημεῖα αἰτοῦσιν καὶ Ἕλληνες σοφίαν ζητοῦσιν·
Since both Jews ask for signs and Greeks seek wisdom,
first here Jews Ἰουδαῖος Ioudaios
first here Greeks Ἕλλην Hellēn
23
ἡμεῖς δὲ κηρύσσομεν Χριστὸν ἐσταυρωμένον, Ἰουδαίοις μὲν σκάνδαλον ⸀ἔθνεσιν δὲ μωρίαν,
but we proclaim Christ crucified — to Jews a stumbling block and to nations foolishness,
24
αὐτοῖς δὲ τοῖς κλητοῖς, Ἰουδαίοις τε καὶ Ἕλλησιν, Χριστὸν θεοῦ δύναμιν καὶ θεοῦ σοφίαν.
but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
25
ὅτι τὸ μωρὸν τοῦ θεοῦ σοφώτερον τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐστίν, καὶ τὸ ἀσθενὲς τοῦ θεοῦ ἰσχυρότερον τῶν ⸀ἀνθρώπων.
Because the foolish thing of God is wiser than men, and the weak thing of God is stronger than men.
26
Βλέπετε γὰρ τὴν κλῆσιν ὑμῶν, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι οὐ πολλοὶ σοφοὶ κατὰ σάρκα, οὐ πολλοὶ δυνατοί, οὐ πολλοὶ εὐγενεῖς·
For look at your calling, brothers, that not many are wise according to flesh, not many able, not many noble;
Why this rendering
1Cor.1.26 Observation
Syntactic observation
Βλέπετε γὰρ τὴν κλῆσιν ὑμῶν, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι οὐ πολλοὶ σοφοὶ κατὰ σάρκα, οὐ πολλοὶ δυνατοί, οὐ πολλοὶ εὐγενεῖς … καὶ τὰ ἀγενῆ τοῦ κόσμου καὶ τὰ ἐξουθενημένα ἐξελέξατο ὁ θεός — look at your calling: not many wise according to flesh, not many able, not many noble … God chose the lowborn things of the world and the things treated with contempt. Βλέπετε can be read as indicative (‘you see’) or imperative (‘look’); it is kept imperative and left open. The three of v.26 (wise, able, noble) are overturned one by one in vv.27-28 — the foolish, the weak, the lowborn. εὐγενής (Luke 19:12 ‘nobleman’) and ἀγενής (only here in the New Testament) are birth (γένος) possessed and lacking — English noble / lowborn shows the pair of birth; Korean keeps it on one side only. ‘The things that are not / the things that are’ (τὰ μὴ ὄντα / τὰ ὄντα) is a site the base text marks with ⸀ (some manuscripts add καί) — read not as a fourth item beside the three but as their re-naming, hence ‘the things that are not’ in apposition.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “noble / lowborn” — εὐγενής as in Luke 19:12
Basis Keeps the pair of birth.
“well-born / base”
Basis Building the pair on one word.
Rejected It departs from the fixed ‘nobleman’ of Luke 19:12, and ‘well-born/base’ imports a social system the text does not name.
Lost in translation
εὐγενής ↔ ἀγενής — birth possessed and lacking; noble / lowborn keeps the pair.
Survives in · this edition — 1 of the nine carry it (this language among them)
Βλέπετε, indicative or imperative — closed as ‘look’.
this edition — none of the nine carries it (measured)
27
ἀλλὰ τὰ μωρὰ τοῦ κόσμου ἐξελέξατο ὁ θεός, ἵνα ⸂καταισχύνῃ τοὺς σοφούς⸃, καὶ τὰ ἀσθενῆ τοῦ κόσμου ἐξελέξατο ὁ θεός, ἵνα καταισχύνῃ τὰ ἰσχυρά,
but God chose the foolish things of the world, so that he might put to shame the wise; and God chose the weak things of the world, so that he might put to shame the strong things,
28
καὶ τὰ ἀγενῆ τοῦ κόσμου καὶ τὰ ἐξουθενημένα ἐξελέξατο ὁ θεός, ⸀τὰ μὴ ὄντα, ἵνα τὰ ὄντα καταργήσῃ,
and God chose the lowborn things of the world and the things treated with contempt, the things that are not, so that he might abolish the things that are,
29
ὅπως μὴ καυχήσηται πᾶσα σὰρξ ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ.
so that no flesh might boast before God.
30
ἐξ αὐτοῦ δὲ ὑμεῖς ἐστε ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, ὃς ἐγενήθη ⸂σοφία ἡμῖν⸃ ἀπὸ θεοῦ, δικαιοσύνη τε καὶ ἁγιασμὸς καὶ ἀπολύτρωσις,
But from him you are in Christ Jesus, who became wisdom to us from God — both righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
31
ἵνα καθὼς γέγραπται· Ὁ καυχώμενος ἐν κυρίῳ καυχάσθω.
so that, as it is written: ‘Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.’