1 Corinthians 1:26

1:26 Think about the circumstances of your call, ¹  brothers and sisters. ²  Not many were wise by human standards, ³  not many were powerful, not many were born to a privileged position. ⁴ 

1 Corinthians 2:1

2:1 When I came ⁵  to you, brothers and sisters, ⁶  I did not come with superior eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed the testimony ⁷  of God.

1 Corinthians 3:1

Immaturity and Self-deception

3:1 So, brothers and sisters, ⁸  I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh, ⁹  as infants in Christ.

1 Corinthians 4:3

4:3 So for me, it is a minor matter that I am judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself.

1 Corinthians 5:12

5:12 For what do I have to do with judging those outside? Are you not to judge those inside?

1 Corinthians 7:7

7:7 I wish that everyone was as I am. But each has his own gift from God, one this way, another that.

1 Corinthians 7:29

7:29 And I say this, brothers and sisters: ¹⁰  The time is short. So then those who have wives should be as those who have none,

1 Corinthians 10:20

10:20 No, I mean that what the pagans sacrifice ¹¹  is to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be partners with demons.

1 Corinthians 11:2

Women’s Head Coverings

11:2 I praise you ¹²  because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions just as I passed them on to you.

1 Corinthians 11:18

11:18 For in the first place, when you come together as a church I hear there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it.

1 Corinthians 15:1

Christ’s Resurrection

15:1 Now I want to make clear for you, ¹³  brothers and sisters, ¹⁴  the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand,

1 Corinthians 15:9

15:9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

1 Corinthians 15:50

15:50 Now this is what I am saying, brothers and sisters: ¹⁵  Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

¹ tn Grk “Think about your calling.” “Calling” in Paul’s writings usually refers to God’s work of drawing people to faith in Christ. The following verses show that “calling” here stands by metonymy for their circumstances when they became Christians, leading to the translation “the circumstances of your call.”

² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

³ tn Grk “according to the flesh.”

⁴ tn The Greek word ευγενής (eugenh") refers to the status of being born into nobility, wealth, or power with an emphasis on the privileges and benefits that come with that position.

⁵ tn Grk “and I, when I came.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, κἀγώ (kagw) has not been translated here.

⁶ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

⁷ tc ‡ A few important mss (Ì^46vid א* A C pc as well as some versions and fathers) read μυστήριον (musthrion, “mystery”) instead of μαρτύριον (marturion, “testimony”). But the latter has wider ms support (א² B D F G Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï and some versions), though not quite as impressive. μαρτύριον may have been changed by scribes in anticipation of Paul’s words in 2:7, or conversely, μυστήριον may have been changed to conform to 1:6. Transcriptionally, since “the mystery of God/Christ” is a well-worn expression in the corpus Paulinum (1 Cor 2:7; 4:1; Eph 3:4; Col 2:2; 4:3), while “testimony of Christ” occurs in Paul only once (1 Cor 1:6, though “testimony of the Lord” appears in 2 Tim 1:8), and “testimony of God” never, it is likely that scribes changed the text to the more usual expression. A decision is difficult in this instance, but a slight preference should be given to μαρτύριον.

⁹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

¹⁰ tn Grk “fleshly [people]”; the Greek term here is σαρκινός (BDAG 914 s.v. 1).

¹³ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

¹⁷ tn Grk “what they sacrifice”; the referent (the pagans) is clear from the context and has been specified in the translation for clarity.

²¹ tc The Western and Byzantine texts, as well as one or two Alexandrian mss (D F G Ψ 33 Ï latt sy), combine in reading ἀδελφοί (adelfoi, “brothers”) here, while the Alexandrian witnesses (Ì⁴⁶ א A B C P 81 630 1175 1739 1881 2464 co) largely lack the address. The addition of ἀδελφοί is apparently a motivated reading, however, for scribes would have naturally wanted to add it to ἐπαινῶ δὲ ὑμᾶς (epainw de Juma", “now I praise you”), especially as this begins a new section. On the other hand, it is difficult to explain how the shorter reading could have arisen from the longer one. Thus, on both internal and external grounds, the shorter reading is strongly preferred.

²⁵ tn Grk “Now I make known to you.”

²⁶ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

²⁹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.