1 Corinthians 8:2

8:2 If someone thinks he knows something, he does not yet know to the degree that he needs to know.

1 Corinthians 13:9

13:9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part,

1 Corinthians 2:8

2:8 None of the rulers of this age understood it. If they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

1 Corinthians 3:20

3:20 And again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” ¹ 

1 Corinthians 8:3

8:3 But if someone loves God, he ²  is known by God. ³ 

1 Corinthians 2:16

2:16 For who has known the mind of the Lord, so as to advise him? ⁴  But we have the mind of Christ.

1 Corinthians 2:14

2:14 The unbeliever ⁵  does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. And he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

1 Corinthians 4:19

4:19 But I will come to you soon, if the Lord is willing, and I will find out not only the talk of these arrogant people, but also their power.

1 Corinthians 13:12

13:12 For now we see in a mirror indirectly, ⁶  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.

1 Corinthians 14:7

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?

1 Corinthians 14:9

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.

1 Corinthians 1:21

1:21 For since in the wisdom of God the world by its wisdom did not know God, God was pleased to save those who believe by the foolishness of preaching.

1 Corinthians 2:11

2:11 For who among men knows the things of a man except the man’s spirit within him? So too, no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.

[3:20]  ¹ sn A quotation from Ps 94:11.

[8:3]  ¹ tn Grk “this one.”

[8:3]  ² tn Grk “him”; in the translation the most likely referent (God) has been specified for clarity.

[2:16]  ¹ sn A quotation from Isa 40:13.

[2:14]  ¹ tn Grk “natural person.” Cf. BDAG 1100 s.v. ψυχικός a, “an unspiritual pers., one who merely functions bodily, without being touched by the Spirit of God.”

[13:12]  ¹ 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.