Bible Reading November 26 
1 Corinthians 13:1--16:24
Context13:1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but I do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 13:2 And if I have prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 13:3 If I give away everything I own, and if I give over my body in order to boast, 1 but do not have love, I receive no benefit.
13:4 Love is patient, love is kind, it is not envious. Love does not brag, it is not puffed up. 13:5 It is not rude, it is not self-serving, it is not easily angered or resentful. 13:6 It is not glad about injustice, but rejoices in the truth. 13:7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
13:8 Love never ends. But if there are prophecies, they will be set aside; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be set aside. 13:9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, 13:10 but when what is perfect 2 comes, the partial will be set aside. 13:11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. But when I became an adult, 3 I set aside childish ways. 13:12 For now we see in a mirror indirectly, 4 but then we will see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, just as I have been fully known. 13:13 And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.
14:1 Pursue love and be eager for the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. 14:2 For the one speaking in a tongue does not speak to people but to God, for no one understands; he is speaking mysteries by the Spirit. 5 14:3 But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, 6 encouragement, and consolation. 14:4 The one who speaks in a tongue builds himself up, 7 but the one who prophesies builds up the church. 14:5 I wish you all spoke in tongues, but even more that you would prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless he interprets so that the church may be strengthened.
14:6 Now, brothers and sisters, 8 if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I help you unless I speak to you with a revelation or with knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 14:7 It is similar for lifeless things that make a sound, like a flute or harp. Unless they make a distinction in the notes, how can what is played on the flute or harp be understood? 14:8 If, for example, the trumpet makes an unclear sound, who will get ready for battle? 14:9 It is the same for you. If you do not speak clearly with your tongue, how will anyone know what is being said? For you will be speaking into the air. 14:10 There are probably many kinds of languages in the world, and none is without meaning. 14:11 If then I do not know the meaning of a language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. 14:12 It is the same with you. Since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, 9 seek to abound in order to strengthen the church.
14:13 So then, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret. 14:14 If 10 I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unproductive. 14:15 What should I do? 11 I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind. I will sing praises with my spirit, but I will also sing praises with my mind. 14:16 Otherwise, if you are praising God with your spirit, how can someone without the gift 12 say “Amen” to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? 14:17 For you are certainly giving thanks well, but the other person is not strengthened. 14:18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you, 14:19 but in the church I want to speak five words with my mind to instruct others, rather than ten thousand words in a tongue.
14:20 Brothers and sisters, 13 do not be children in your thinking. Instead, be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature. 14:21 It is written in the law: “By people with strange tongues and by the lips of strangers I will speak to this people, yet not even in this way will they listen to me,” 14 says the Lord. 14:22 So then, tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers. Prophecy, however, is not for unbelievers but for believers. 14:23 So if the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and unbelievers or uninformed people enter, will they not say that you have lost your minds? 14:24 But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or uninformed person enters, he will be convicted by all, he will be called to account by all. 14:25 The secrets of his heart are disclosed, and in this way he will fall down with his face to the ground and worship God, declaring, “God is really among you.”
14:26 What should you do then, brothers and sisters? 15 When you come together, each one has a song, has a lesson, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all these things be done for the strengthening of the church. 14:27 If someone speaks in a tongue, it should be two, or at the most three, one after the other, and someone must interpret. 14:28 But if there is no interpreter, he should be silent in the church. Let him speak to himself and to God. 14:29 Two or three prophets should speak and the others should evaluate what is said. 14:30 And if someone sitting down receives a revelation, the person who is speaking should conclude. 14:31 For you can all prophesy one after another, so all can learn and be encouraged. 14:32 Indeed, the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets, 14:33 for God is not characterized by disorder but by peace.
As in all the churches of the saints, 16 14:34 the women 17 should be silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak. 18 Rather, let them be in submission, as in fact the law says. 14:35 If they want to find out about something, they should ask their husbands at home, because it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in church. 19 14:36 Did the word of God begin with you, 20 or did it come to you alone?
14:37 If anyone considers himself a prophet or spiritual person, he should acknowledge that what I write to you is the Lord’s command. 14:38 If someone does not recognize this, he is not recognized. 14:39 So then, brothers and sisters, 21 be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid anyone from speaking in tongues. 22 14:40 And do everything in a decent and orderly manner.
15:1 Now I want to make clear for you, 23 brothers and sisters, 24 the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand, 15:2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you – unless you believed in vain. 15:3 For I passed on to you as of first importance 25 what I also received – that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, 15:4 and that he was buried, and that he was raised 26 on the third day according to the scriptures, 15:5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 15:6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters 27 at one time, most of whom are still alive, 28 though some have fallen asleep. 29 15:7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 15:8 Last of all, as though to one born at the wrong time, 30 he appeared to me also. 15:9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been in vain. In fact, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, but the grace of God with me. 15:11 Whether then it was I or they, this is the way we preach and this is the way you believed.
15:12 Now if Christ is being preached as raised from the dead, 31 how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? 15:13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 15:14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is futile and your faith is empty. 15:15 Also, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified against God that he raised Christ from the dead, when in reality he did not raise him, if indeed the dead are not raised. 15:16 For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised. 15:17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is useless; you are still in your sins. 15:18 Furthermore, those who have fallen asleep 32 in Christ have also perished. 15:19 For if only in this life we have hope in Christ, we should be pitied more than anyone.
15:20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 15:21 For since death came through a man, 33 the resurrection of the dead also came through a man. 34 15:22 For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. 15:23 But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; then when Christ comes, those who belong to him. 35 15:24 Then 36 comes the end, 37 when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he has brought to an end all rule and all authority and power. 15:25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 15:26 The last enemy to be eliminated is death. 15:27 For he has put everything in subjection under his feet. 38 But when it says “everything” has been put in subjection, it is clear that this does not include the one who put everything in subjection to him. 15:28 And when all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will be subjected to the one who subjected everything to him, so that God may be all in all.
15:29 Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? 39 If the dead are not raised at all, then why are they baptized for them? 15:30 Why too are we in danger every hour? 15:31 Every day I am in danger of death! This is as sure as 40 my boasting in you, 41 which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord. 15:32 If from a human point of view I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, 42 what did it benefit me? If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. 43 15:33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” 44 15:34 Sober up as you should, and stop sinning! For some have no knowledge of God – I say this to your shame!
15:35 But someone will say, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” 15:36 Fool! What you sow will not come to life unless it dies. 15:37 And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare seed 45 – perhaps of wheat or something else. 15:38 But God gives it a body just as he planned, and to each of the seeds a body of its own. 15:39 All flesh is not the same: People have one flesh, animals have another, birds and fish another. 46 15:40 And there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. The glory of the heavenly body is one sort and the earthly another. 15:41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon and another glory of the stars, for star differs from star in glory.
15:42 It is the same with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. 47 15:43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 15:44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 15:45 So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living person”; 48 the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 15:46 However, the spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and then the spiritual. 15:47 The first man is from the earth, made of dust; the second man is from heaven. 15:48 Like the one made of dust, so too are those made of dust, and like the one from heaven, so too those who are heavenly. 15:49 And just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, let us also bear 49 the image of the man of heaven.
15:50 Now this is what I am saying, brothers and sisters: 50 Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 15:51 Listen, 51 I will tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, 52 but we will all be changed – 15:52 in a moment, in the blinking 53 of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 15:53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 15:54 Now when this perishable puts on the imperishable, and this mortal puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will happen,
“Death has been swallowed up in victory.” 54
15:55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?” 55
15:56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 15:57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! 15:58 So then, dear brothers and sisters, 56 be firm. Do not be moved! Always be outstanding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
16:1 With regard to the collection for the saints, please follow the directions that I gave to the churches of Galatia: 57 16:2 On the first day of the week, each of you should set aside some income 58 and save 59 it to the extent that God has blessed you, 60 so that a collection will not have to be made 61 when I come. 16:3 Then, when I arrive, I will send those whom you approve with letters of explanation to carry your gift to Jerusalem. 62 16:4 And if it seems advisable that I should go also, they will go with me.
16:5 But I will come to you after I have gone through Macedonia – for I will be going through Macedonia – 16:6 and perhaps I will stay with you, or even spend the winter, so that you can send me on my journey, wherever I go. 16:7 For I do not want to see you now in passing, since I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord allows. 16:8 But I will stay in Ephesus 63 until Pentecost, 16:9 because a door of great opportunity stands wide open for me, 64 but there are many opponents.
16:10 Now if Timothy comes, see that he has nothing to fear among you, for he is doing the Lord’s work, as I am too. 16:11 So then, let no one treat him with contempt. But send him on his way in peace so that he may come to me. For I am expecting him with the brothers. 65
16:12 With regard to our brother Apollos: I strongly encouraged him to visit you with the other brothers, 66 but it was simply not his intention to come now. 67 He will come when he has the opportunity.
16:13 Stay alert, stand firm in the faith, show courage, be strong. 16:14 Everything you do should be done in love.
16:15 Now, brothers and sisters, 68 you know about the household of Stephanus, that as the first converts 69 of Achaia, they devoted themselves to ministry for the saints. I urge you 16:16 also to submit to people like this, and to everyone who cooperates in the work and labors hard. 16:17 I was glad about the arrival of Stephanus, Fortunatus, and Achaicus because they have supplied the fellowship with you that I lacked. 70 16:18 For they refreshed my spirit and yours. So then, recognize people like this.
16:19 The churches in the province of Asia 71 send greetings to you. Aquila and Prisca 72 greet 73 you warmly in the Lord, with the church that meets in their house. 16:20 All the brothers and sisters 74 send greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss.
16:21 I, Paul, send this greeting with my own hand.
16:22 Let anyone who has no love for the Lord be accursed. Our Lord, come! 75
16:23 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.
[13:3] 1 tc The reading καυχήσωμαι (kauchswmai, “I might boast”) is well supported by Ì46 א A B 048 33 1739* pc co Hiermss. The competing reading, καυθήσομαι (kauqhsomai, “I will burn”), is found in C D F G L 81 1175 1881* al latt and a host of patristic writers. From this reading other variants were obviously derived: καυθήσωμαι (kauqhswmai), a future subjunctive (“I might burn”) read by the Byzantine text and a few others (Ψ 1739c 1881c Ï); and καυθῇ (kauqh, “it might be burned”) read by 1505 pc. On an external level, the Alexandrian reading is obviously superior, though the Western and Byzantine readings need to be accounted for. (The following discussion is derived largely from TCGNT 497-98). Internally, καυχήσωμαι is superior for the following reasons: (1) Once the Church started suffering persecution and martyrdom by fire, the v.l. naturally arose. Once there, it is difficult to see why any scribe would intentionally change it to καυχήσωμαι. (2) Involving as it does the change of just two letters (χ to θ [c to q], ω to ο [w to o]), this reading could be accomplished without much fanfare. Yet, it appears cumbersome in the context, both because of the passive voice and especially the retention of the first person (“If I give up my body that I may be burned”). A more logical word would have been the third person passive, καυθῇ, as read in 1505 (“If I give up my body that it may be burned”). (3) Although the connection between giving up one’s body and boasting is ambiguous, this very ambiguity has all the earmarks of being from Paul. It may have the force of giving up one’s body into slavery. In any event, it looks to be the harder reading. Incidentally, the Byzantine reading is impossible because the future subjunctive did not occur in Koine Greek. As the reading of the majority of Byzantine minuscules, its roots are clearly post-Koine and as such is a “grammatical monstrosity that cannot be attributed to Paul” (TCGNT 498). Cf. also the notes in BDF §28; MHT 2:219.
[13:10] 2 tn Or “when completion.”
[13:11] 3 tn The Greek term translated “adult” here is ἀνήρ (anhr), a term which ordinarily refers to males, husbands, etc. In this context Paul contrasts the states of childhood and adulthood, so the term has been translated “adult”; cf. BDAG 79 s.v. 1.b.
[13:12] 4 tn Grk “we are seeing through [= using] a mirror by means of a dark image.” Corinth was well known in the ancient world for producing some of the finest bronze mirrors available. Paul’s point in this analogy, then, is not that our current understanding and relationship with God is distorted (as if the mirror reflected poorly), but rather that it is “indirect,” (i.e., the nature of looking in a mirror) compared to the relationship we will enjoy with him in the future when we see him “face to face” (cf. G. D. Fee, First Corinthians [NICNT], 648). The word “indirectly” translates the Greek phrase ἐν αἰνίγματι (ejn ainigmati, “in an obscure image”) which itself may reflect an allusion to Num 12:8 (LXX οὐ δι᾿ αἰνιγμάτων), where God says that he speaks to Moses “mouth to mouth [= face to face]…and not in dark figures [of speech].” Though this allusion to the OT is not explicitly developed here, it probably did not go unnoticed by the Corinthians who were apparently familiar with OT traditions about Moses (cf. 1 Cor 10:2). Indeed, in 2 Cor 3:13-18 Paul had recourse with the Corinthians to contrast Moses’ ministry under the old covenant with the hope afforded through apostolic ministry and the new covenant. Further, it is in this context, specifically in 2 Cor 3:18, that the apostle invokes the use of the mirror analogy again in order to unfold the nature of the Christian’s progressive transformation by the Spirit.
[14:2] 5 tn Or “with the spirit”; cf. vv. 14-16.
[14:3] 6 tn Grk “edification.”
[14:4] 7 sn The Greek term builds (himself) up does not necessarily bear positive connotations in this context.
[14:6] 8 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[14:12] 9 tn Grk “eager for spirits.” The plural is probably a shorthand for the Spirit’s gifts, especially in this context, tongues.
[14:14] 10 tc ‡ Most witnesses, including some important ones (א A Ds Ψ 048 Ï lat sy bo), have γάρ (gar, “for”) here, while an equally impressive array of witnesses lack the conjunction (Ì46 B F G 0243 1739 1881 sa). This conjunction was frequently added by scribes in epistolary literature as a clarifying word, making the connection with the preceding more explicit. As such, it has the earmarks of being a motivated reading and thus should be rejected. NA27 places the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.
[14:15] 11 tn Grk “what then is it?”
[14:16] 12 tn Grk “how can someone who fills the place of the unlearned say ‘Amen.’”
[14:20] 13 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[14:21] 14 sn A quotation from Isa 28:11-12.
[14:26] 15 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[14:33] 16 sn This phrase may be taken with v. 33a.
[14:34] 17 tn The word for “woman” and “wife” is the same in Greek. Because of the reference to husbands in v. 35, the word may be translated “wives” here. But in passages governing conduct in church meetings like this (cf. 11:2-16; 1 Tim 2:9-15) the general meaning “women” is more likely.
[14:34] 18 sn For they are not permitted to speak. In light of 11:2-16, which gives permission for women to pray or prophesy in the church meetings, the silence commanded here seems not to involve the absolute prohibition of a woman addressing the assembly. Therefore (1) some take be silent to mean not taking an authoritative teaching role as 1 Tim 2 indicates, but (2) the better suggestion is to relate it to the preceding regulations about evaluating the prophets (v. 29). Here Paul would be indicating that the women should not speak up during such an evaluation, since such questioning would be in violation of the submission to male leadership that the OT calls for (the law, e.g., Gen 2:18).
[14:35] 19 tc Some scholars have argued that vv. 34-35 should be excised from the text (principally G. D. Fee, First Corinthians [NICNT], 697-710; P. B. Payne, “Fuldensis, Sigla for Variants in Vaticanus, and 1 Cor 14.34-5,” NTS 41 [1995]: 240-262). This is because the Western witnesses (D F G ar b vgms Ambst) have these verses after v. 40, while the rest of the tradition retains them here. There are no
[14:36] 20 tn Grk “Did the word of God go out from you.”
[14:39] 21 tc ‡ μου (mou, “my”) is found after ἀδελφοί (adelfoi) in a number of significant witnesses (א A B* D1 048 326 1175 2464 al), but lacking in most other witnesses (Ì46 B2 D* F G Ψ 0243 33 1739 1881 Ï lat). Every other time Paul says “So then, brothers (and sisters)” he adds “my” (ὥστε, ἀδελφοί μου; {wste, adelfoi mou). There is no good reason why scribes would intentionally omit “my” here but not elsewhere. Thus, the longer reading is in conformity with Paul’s general style and as such seems to be scribally motivated. NA27 has the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.
[14:39] 22 tn Grk “speaking in tongues.” The words “anyone from” are supplied for the sake of clarity.
[15:1] 23 tn Grk “Now I make known to you.”
[15:1] 24 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[15:3] 25 tn Grk “among (the) first things.”
[15:4] 26 tn Grk “he has been raised/is raised,” using a Greek tense that points to the present effect of the act of raising him. But in English idiom the temporal phrase “on the third day” requires a different translation of the verb.
[15:6] 27 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[15:6] 28 tn Grk “most of whom remain until now.”
[15:6] 29 tn The verb κοιμάω (koimaw) literally means “sleep,” but it is often used in the Bible as a euphemism for death when speaking of believers. This metaphorical usage by its very nature emphasizes the hope of resurrection: Believers will one day “wake up” out of death. Here the term refers to death, but “sleep” was used in the translation to emphasize the metaphorical, rhetorical usage of the term.
[15:8] 30 sn One born at the wrong time. The Greek word used here (ἔκτρωμα, ektrwma) refers to a premature birth, a miscarriage, or an aborted child. Paul uses it as a powerful figure of the unexpected, abnormal nature of his apostolic call.
[15:12] 31 tn Grk “that he has been raised from the dead.”
[15:18] 32 tn See the note on the word “asleep” in 15:6. This term is also used in v. 20.
[15:21] 33 tn Or “through a human being” (a reference to Adam).
[15:21] 34 tn Or “through a human being” (a reference to Jesus Christ).
[15:23] 35 tn Grk “then those who belong to Christ, at his coming.”
[15:24] 36 tn This is a continuation of the previous sentence in the Greek text. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[15:24] 37 tn Grk “then the end” or “then (is) the end.” Paul explains how the “end” relates to resurrection in vv. 25-28.
[15:27] 38 sn A quotation from Ps 8:6.
[15:29] 39 sn Many suggestions have been offered for the puzzling expression baptized for the dead. There are up to 200 different explanations for the passage; a summary is given by K. C. Thompson, “I Corinthians 15,29 and Baptism for the Dead,” Studia Evangelica 2.1 (TU 87), 647-59. The most likely interpretation is that some Corinthians had undergone baptism to bear witness to the faith of fellow believers who had died without experiencing that rite themselves. Paul’s reference to the practice here is neither a recommendation nor a condemnation. He simply uses it as evidence from the lives of the Corinthians themselves to bolster his larger argument, begun in 15:12, that resurrection from the dead is a present reality in Christ and a future reality for them. Whatever they may have proclaimed, the Corinthians’ actions demonstrated that they had hope for a bodily resurrection.
[15:31] 40 tn Or, more literally, “I swear by the boasting in you.”
[15:31] 41 tc ‡ Although the witnesses for the shorter reading (Ì46 D F G Ψ 075 0243 1739 1881 Ï) are not as strong as for the addition of ἀδελφοί (adelfoi, “brothers”) at this juncture (א A B K P 33 81 104 365 1175 2464 lat sy co), it is difficult to find a reason why scribes would either intentionally or unintentionally drop the address here. Thus, the shorter reading is slightly preferred.
[15:32] 42 map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.
[15:32] 43 sn An allusion to Isa 22:13; 56:12.
[15:33] 44 sn A quotation from the poet Menander, Thais 218, which Paul uses in a proverbial sense.
[15:37] 45 tn Grk “and what you sow, you do not sow the body that will be, but a bare seed.”
[15:39] 46 tn Grk “all flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one (flesh) of people, but another flesh of animals and another flesh of birds and another of fish.”
[15:42] 47 tn Grk “it is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption.” The “it” refers to the body, as v. 44 shows.
[15:45] 48 tn Grk “living soul”; a quotation from Gen 2:7.
[15:49] 49 tc ‡ A few significant witnesses have the future indicative φορέσομεν (foresomen, “we will bear”; B I 6 630 1881 al sa) instead of the aorist subjunctive φορέσωμεν (foreswmen, “let us bear”; Ì46 א A C D F G Ψ 075 0243 33 1739 Ï latt bo). If the original reading is the future tense, then “we will bear” would be a guarantee that believers would be like Jesus (and unlike Adam) in the resurrection. If the aorist subjunctive is original, then “let us bear” would be a command to show forth the image of Jesus, i.e., to live as citizens of the kingdom that believers will one day inherit. The future indicative is not widespread geographically. At the same time, it fits the context well: Not only are there indicatives in this section (especially vv. 42-49), but the conjunction καί (kai) introducing the comparative καθώς (kaqws) seems best to connect to the preceding by furthering the same argument (what is, not what ought to be). For this reason, though, the future indicative could be a reading thus motivated by an early scribe. In light of the extremely weighty evidence for the aorist subjunctive, it is probably best to regard the aorist subjunctive as original. This connects well with v. 50, for there Paul makes a pronouncement that seems to presuppose some sort of exhortation. G. D. Fee (First Corinthians [NICNT], 795) argues for the originality of the subjunctive, stating that “it is nearly impossible to account for anyone’s having changed a clearly understandable future to the hortatory subjunctive so early and so often that it made its way into every textual history as the predominant reading.” The subjunctive makes a great deal of sense in view of the occasion of 1 Corinthians. Paul wrote to combat an over-realized eschatology in which some of the Corinthians evidently believed they were experiencing all the benefits of the resurrection body in the present, and thus that their behavior did not matter. If the subjunctive is the correct reading, it seems Paul makes two points: (1) that the resurrection is a bodily one, as distinct from an out-of-body experience, and (2) that one’s behavior in the interim does make a difference (see 15:32-34, 58).
[15:50] 50 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[15:51] 52 tc The manuscripts are grouped into four basic readings here: (1) א C 0243* 33 1739 have “we all will sleep, but we will not all be changed” (πάντες κοιμηθησόμεθα, οὐ πάντες δὲ ἀλλαγησόμεθα); (2) Ì46 Ac (F G) have “we will not all sleep, but we will not all be changed” (πάντες οὐ κοιμηθησόμεθα, οὐ πάντες δὲ ἀλλαγησόμεθα); (3) D* lat Tert Ambst Spec read “we will all rise, but we will not all be changed.” (4) The wording πάντες οὐ κοιμηθησόμεθα, πάντες δὲ ἀλλαγησόμεθα (“we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed”) is found in B D2 Ψ 075 0243c 1881 Ï sy co. How shall we interpret such data? In light of the fact that Paul and his generation did in fact die, early scribes may have felt some embarrassment over the bald statement, “We will not all sleep” (πάντες οὐ κοιμηθησόμεθα). This could account for the first variant. Although the second variant could be viewed as a conflation of (1) and (4) (so TCGNT 502; G. D. Fee, First Corinthians [NICNT], 796), it could also have arisen consciously, to guard against the notion that all whom Paul was addressing should regard themselves as true believers. The third variant, prominent in the Western witnesses, may have arisen to counter those who would deny the final resurrection (so TCGNT 502). In any event, since the fourth reading has the best credentials externally and best explains the rise of the others it should be adopted as the authentic wording here.
[15:52] 53 tn The Greek word ῥιπή (rJiph) refers to a very rapid movement (BDAG 906 s.v.). This has traditionally been translated as “twinkling,” which implies an exceedingly fast – almost instantaneous – movement of the eyes, but this could be confusing to the modern reader since twinkling in modern English often suggests a faint, flashing light. In conjunction with the genitive ὀφθαλμοῦ (ofqalmou, “of an eye”), “blinking” is the best English equivalent (see, e.g., L&N 16.5), although it does not convey the exact speed implicit in the Greek term.
[15:54] 54 sn A quotation from Isa 25:8.
[15:55] 55 sn A quotation from Hos 13:14.
[15:58] 56 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[16:1] 57 tn Grk “as I directed the churches of Galatia, so also you yourselves do.”
[16:2] 58 tn Grk “set aside, storing whatever he has been blessed with.”
[16:2] 59 tn Grk “set aside, storing.” The participle θησαυρίζων (qhsaurizwn) indicates the purpose or result of setting aside the extra income.
[16:2] 60 tn “To the extent that God has blessed you” translates an awkward expression, “whatever has been prospered [to you].” This verb has been translated as an active with “God” as subject, taking it as a divine passive.
[16:2] 61 tn Grk “so that collections will not be taking place.”
[16:3] 62 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[16:8] 63 map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.
[16:9] 64 tn Grk “for a door has opened wide to me, great and effective.”
[16:11] 65 tn Since Paul appears to expect specific delegates here and they were most likely men, the Greek word ἀδελφοί (adelfoi) here has not been not translated as “brothers and sisters.”
[16:12] 66 tn Grk “with the brothers.”
[16:12] 67 tn Grk “it was simply not the will that he come now.”
[16:15] 68 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[16:15] 69 tn Grk “firstfruits.”
[16:17] 70 tn Or “they have made up for your absence” (BDAG 70 s.v. ἀναπληρόω 3).
[16:19] 71 tn Grk “the churches of Asia”; in the NT “Asia” always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.
[16:19] 72 sn On Aquila and Prisca see also Acts 18:2, 18, 26; Rom 16:3-4; 2 Tim 4:19. In the NT “Priscilla” and “Prisca” are the same person. The author of Acts uses the full name Priscilla, while Paul uses the diminutive form Prisca.
[16:19] 73 tc The plural form of this verb, ἀσπάζονται (aspazontai, “[they] greet”), is found in several good
[16:20] 74 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
[16:22] 75 tn The Greek text has μαράνα θά (marana qa). These Aramaic words can also be read as maran aqa, translated “Our Lord has come!”
[16:24] 76 tc Although the majority of
