1:1  PAUL, SUMMONED by the will {and} purpose of God to be an apostle (special messenger) of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,

1:2  To the church (assembly) of God which is in Corinth, to those consecrated {and} purified {and} made holy in Christ Jesus, [who are] selected {and} called to be saints (God's people), together with all those who in any place call upon {and} give honor to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

1:3  Grace (favor and spiritual blessing) be to you and [heart] peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1:4  I thank my God at all times for you because of the grace (the favor and spiritual blessing) of God which was bestowed on you in Christ Jesus,

1:5  [So] that in Him in every respect you were enriched, in full power {and} readiness of speech [to speak of your faith] and complete knowledge {and} illumination [to give you full insight into its meaning].

1:6  In this way [our] witnessing concerning Christ (the Messiah) was so confirmed {and} established {and} made sure in you

1:7  That you are not [consciously] falling behind {or} lacking in any special spiritual endowment {or} Christian grace [the reception of which is due to the power of divine grace operating in your souls by the Holy Spirit], while you wait {and} watch [constantly living in hope] for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ {and} [His] being made visible to all.

1:8  And He will establish you to the end [keep you steadfast, give you strength, and guarantee your vindication; He will be your warrant against all accusation or indictment so that you will be] guiltless {and} irreproachable in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah).

1:9  God is faithful (reliable, trustworthy, and therefore ever true to His promise, and He can be depended on); by Him you were called into companionship {and} participation with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1:10  But I urge {and} entreat you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in perfect harmony {and} full agreement in what you say, and that there be no dissensions {or} factions {or} divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in your common understanding and in your opinions {and} judgments.

1:11  For it has been made clear to me, my brethren, by those of Chloe's household, that there are contentions {and} wrangling {and} factions among you.

1:12  What I mean is this, that each one of you [either] says, I belong to Paul, or I belong to Apollos, or I belong to Cephas (Peter), or I belong to Christ.

1:13  Is Christ (the Messiah) divided into parts? Was Paul crucified on behalf of you? Or were you baptized into the name of Paul?

1:14  I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,

1:15  Lest anyone should say that I baptized in my own name.

1:16  [Yes] I did baptize the household of Stephanas also. More than these, I do not remember that I baptized anyone.

1:17  For Christ (the Messiah) sent me out not to baptize but [to evangelize by] preaching the glad tidings (the Gospel), and that not with verbal eloquence, lest the cross of Christ should be deprived of force {and} emptied of its power {and} rendered vain (fruitless, void of value, and of no effect).

1:18  For the story {and} message of the cross is sheer absurdity {and} folly to those who are perishing {and} on their way to perdition, but to us who are being saved it is the [manifestation of] the power of God.

1:19  For it is written, I will baffle {and} render useless {and} destroy the learning of the learned {and} the philosophy of the philosophers and the cleverness of the clever {and} the discernment of the discerning; I will frustrate {and} nullify [them] {and} bring [them] to nothing.

1:20  Where is the wise man (the philosopher)? Where is the scribe (the scholar)? Where is the investigator (the logician, the debater) of this present time {and} age? Has not God shown up the nonsense {and} the folly of this world's wisdom?

1:21  For when the world with all its earthly wisdom failed to perceive {and} recognize {and} know God by means of its own philosophy, God in His wisdom was pleased through the foolishness of preaching [salvation, procured by Christ and to be had through Him], to save those who believed (who clung to and trusted in and relied on Him).

1:22  For while Jews [demandingly] ask for signs {and} miracles and Greeks pursue philosophy {and} wisdom,

1:23  We preach Christ (the Messiah) crucified, [preaching which] to the Jews is a scandal {and} an offensive stumbling block [that springs a snare or trap], and to the Gentiles it is absurd {and} utterly unphilosophical nonsense.

1:24  But to those who are called, whether Jew or Greek (Gentile), Christ [is] the Power of God and the Wisdom of God.

1:25  [This is] because the foolish thing [that has its source in] God is wiser than men, and the weak thing [that springs] from God is stronger than men.

1:26  For [simply] consider your own call, brethren; not many [of you were considered to be] wise according to human estimates {and} standards, not many influential {and} powerful, not many of high {and} noble birth.

1:27  [No] for God selected (deliberately chose) what in the world is foolish to put the wise to shame, and what the world calls weak to put the strong to shame.

1:28  And God also selected (deliberately chose) what in the world is lowborn {and} insignificant and branded {and} treated with contempt, even the things that are nothing, that He might depose {and} bring to nothing the things that are,

1:29  So that no mortal man should [have pretense for glorying and] boast in the presence of God.

1:30  But it is from Him that you have your life in Christ Jesus, Whom God made our Wisdom from God, [revealed to us a knowledge of the divine plan of salvation previously hidden, manifesting itself as] our Righteousness [thus making us upright and putting us in right standing with God], and our Consecration [making us pure and holy], and our Redemption [providing our ransom from eternal penalty for sin].

1:31  So then, as it is written, Let him who boasts {and} proudly rejoices {and} glories, boast {and} proudly rejoice {and} glory in the Lord.