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    1 Corinthians · 58 verses

    1 Corinthians 15

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    Paul mentions baptism for the dead, then leaves the baptisers, the dead, and the reason standing in the wings.

    The message and its witnessesvv. 1–11

    Paul begins with the gospel he preached and the Corinthians received: Christ died, was buried, was raised, and appeared. The appearances arrive in a wonderfully brisk procession—Cephas, the Twelve, more than five hundred brothers, James, all the apostles, and finally Paul himself, “as to one of untimely birth.” Paul calls himself the least of the apostles because he persecuted the church, yet says grace made his labour fruitful. Whether Paul or the others preached it, this is the message they believed.

    If the dead stay deadvv. 12–34

    Paul now turns the argument over and shakes it. If the dead are not raised, Christ is not raised; then preaching is worthless, faith is futile, the witnesses are false, and those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. But Christ has been raised, the firstfruits, and death’s great reversal runs through Christ and Adam: death came through a man, and resurrection comes through a man. The sequence then grows grand: Christ, those who belong to him, the destruction of every dominion, and finally death itself. There is also the chapter’s most tantalising loose thread: people are baptized for the dead, with no explanation of who they are, whom they represent, or what they hope to accomplish. Paul adds his own danger, including the curious conditional about wild beasts in Ephesus. The sentence never quite says whether the beasts appeared, nor what “for human motives” is doing there.

    The body that risesvv. 35–58

    A question about the resurrection body brings out the seed. What is sown is not yet the body that will be; God gives each seed its own body, and the chapter proceeds through men, animals, birds, fish, heavenly bodies, earthly bodies, the sun, the moon, and stars differing from stars. So the dead are sown perishable, dishonoured, weak, and natural, then raised imperishable, glorious, powerful, and spiritual. Adam is dust; the last Adam is a life-giving spirit. At the last trumpet, the dead are raised and the living are changed in an instant. Death is then addressed rather impolitely, as though it has misplaced its victory and sting. Paul ends with steadfast work, because labour in the Lord is not in vain.

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    Berean Standard Bible, public domain. Names the Hebrew and Greek put in the verse link to the person, place or people they name; the address beside each verse is a link to that verse, which is what a reader copies and shares.

    1. 1 Cor 15:1Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, and in which you stand firm.

    2. 1 Cor 15:2By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

    3. 1 Cor 15:3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

    4. 1 Cor 15:4that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

    5. 1 Cor 15:5and that He appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve.

    6. 1 Cor 15:6After that, He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at once, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.

    7. 1 Cor 15:7Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles.

    8. 1 Cor 15:8And last of all He appeared to me also, as to one of untimely birth.

    9. 1 Cor 15:9For I am the least of the apostles and am unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

    10. 1 Cor 15:10But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not in vain. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

    11. 1 Cor 15:11Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

    12. 1 Cor 15:12But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?

    13. 1 Cor 15:13If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.

    14. 1 Cor 15:14And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is worthless, and so is your faith.

    15. 1 Cor 15:15In that case, we are also exposed as false witnesses about God. For we have testified about God that He raised Christ from the dead, but He did not raise Him if in fact the dead are not raised.

    16. 1 Cor 15:16For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised.

    17. 1 Cor 15:17And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.

    18. 1 Cor 15:18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.

    19. 1 Cor 15:19If our hope in Christ is for this life alone, we are to be pitied more than all men.

    20. 1 Cor 15:20But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

    21. 1 Cor 15:21For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.

    22. 1 Cor 15:22For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.

    23. 1 Cor 15:23But each in his own turn: Christ the firstfruits; then at His coming, those who belong to Him.

    24. 1 Cor 15:24Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power.

    25. 1 Cor 15:25For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.

    26. 1 Cor 15:26The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

    27. 1 Cor 15:27For “God has put everything under His feet.” Now when it says that everything has been put under Him, this clearly does not include the One who put everything under Him.

    28. 1 Cor 15:28And when all things have been subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will be made subject to Him who put all things under Him, so that God may be all in all.

    29. 1 Cor 15:29If these things are not so, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them?

    30. 1 Cor 15:30And why do we endanger ourselves every hour?

    31. 1 Cor 15:31I face death every day, brothers, as surely as I boast about you in Christ Jesus our Lord.

    32. 1 Cor 15:32If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for human motives, what did I gain? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”

    33. 1 Cor 15:33Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

    34. 1 Cor 15:34Sober up as you ought, and stop sinning; for some of you are ignorant of God. I say this to your shame.

    35. 1 Cor 15:35But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?”

    36. 1 Cor 15:36You fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.

    37. 1 Cor 15:37And what you sow is not the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or something else.

    38. 1 Cor 15:38But God gives it a body as He has designed, and to each kind of seed He gives its own body.

    39. 1 Cor 15:39Not all flesh is the same: Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another, and fish another.

    40. 1 Cor 15:40There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. But the splendor of the heavenly bodies is of one degree, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is of another.

    41. 1 Cor 15:41The sun has one degree of splendor, the moon another, and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.

    42. 1 Cor 15:42So will it be with the resurrection of the dead: What is sown is perishable; it is raised imperishable.

    43. 1 Cor 15:43It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.

    44. 1 Cor 15:44It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

    45. 1 Cor 15:45So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam a life-giving spirit.

    46. 1 Cor 15:46The spiritual, however, was not first, but the natural, and then the spiritual.

    47. 1 Cor 15:47The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven.

    48. 1 Cor 15:48As was the earthly man, so also are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven.

    49. 1 Cor 15:49And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so also shall we bear the likeness of the heavenly man.

    50. 1 Cor 15:50Now I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

    51. 1 Cor 15:51Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—

    52. 1 Cor 15:52in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

    53. 1 Cor 15:53For the perishable must be clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.

    54. 1 Cor 15:54When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come to pass: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

    55. 1 Cor 15:55“Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?”

    56. 1 Cor 15:56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

    57. 1 Cor 15:57But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

    58. 1 Cor 15:58Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

    01 — Also here

    Who else the chapter reaches

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    02 — Read alongside

    Where this is echoed

    Readers' own connections, from OpenBible's crowd-voted cross-references — agreement about relevance, and not scholarly confidence. 682 passages were voted onto 55 verses of this chapter; the 16 shown lead on votes, and each is listed at the verse it was voted onto most strongly.

    • 58Galatians 6:9Let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
    • 582 Chronicles 15:7But as for you, be strong; do not be discouraged, for your work will be rewarded.”
    • 58Hebrews 6:10For God is not unjust. He will not forget your work and the love you have shown for His name as you have ministered to the saints and continue to do so.
    • 58Philippians 2:16as you hold forth the word of life, in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.
    • 33Proverbs 13:20He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.
    • 581 Corinthians 3:8He who plants and he who waters are one in purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.
    • 582 Peter 3:17–18Therefore, beloved, since you already know these things, be on your guard so that you will not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure standing.
    • 58Colossians 1:23if indeed you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope of the gospel you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.
    • 581 Thessalonians 1:3and continually recalling before our God and Father your work of faith, your labor of love, and your enduring hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
    • 58Psalms 55:22Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.
    • 58John 6:28–29Then they inquired, “What must we do to perform the works of God?”
    • 33Matthew 24:4Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you.
    • 572 Corinthians 2:14But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.
    • 57Romans 8:37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
    • 331 Corinthians 5:6Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven works through the whole batch of dough?
    • 571 John 5:4–5because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.

    Onward

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