1 Corinthians15

Paul declares the foundational gospel message: Christ died for sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day, witnessed by many. He then argues that if there is no resurrection of the dead, Christ has not risen, rendering faith and preaching vain. However, Christ has indeed risen, becoming the firstfruits of those who sleep, guaranteeing the future resurrection of believers with transformed, spiritual bodies.

Listen to this chapter

The Gospel Foundation and Resurrection Witnesses

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

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

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

that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

and that He appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve.

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

Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles.

And last of all He appeared to me also, as to one of untimely birth.

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

But 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.

Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

The Certainty of Christ's Resurrection

But 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?

If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.

And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is worthless, and so is your faith.

In 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.

For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised.

And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.

Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.

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

Christ, the Firstfruits of the Resurrection

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.

For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.

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

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

For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.

The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

For “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.

And 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.

Arguments for the Resurrection

If 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?

And why do we endanger ourselves every hour?

I face death every day, brothers, as surely as I boast about you in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If 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.”

Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

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

The Nature of the Resurrection Body

But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?”

You fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.

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

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

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

There 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.

The sun has one degree of splendor, the moon another, and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.

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

It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.

It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

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

The spiritual, however, was not first, but the natural, and then the spiritual.

The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven.

As 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.

And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so also shall we bear the likeness of the heavenly man.

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

The Final Victory Over Death

Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—

in 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.

For the perishable must be clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.

When 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.”

“Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

Concluding Exhortation

Therefore, 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.

Study Notes for 1 Corinthians 15

Verse 1

Paul begins by reminding the Corinthians of the essential gospel message they received, emphasizing that their present standing in faith depends upon this truth.

Verse 2

The phrase 'unless ye have believed in vain' serves as a warning, urging them to hold fast to the historical content of the gospel against those who deny the resurrection.

Verse 3

This statement is a crucial summary of the early Christian kerygma (preaching), likely reflecting a fixed creedal formula handed down to Paul and now delivered to the church.

Verse 4

The resurrection 'according to the scriptures' shows that Christ's death and rising were not accidental events but the fulfillment of divine prophecy (e.g., Psalm 16:10; Hosea 6:2).

Verse 5

Cephas is the Aramaic name for Peter. Paul emphasizes the multiple, verifiable eyewitnesses who saw the resurrected Christ, beginning with the chief apostle.

Verse 6

Mentioning the five hundred witnesses, most of whom were still alive, acts as historical evidence: Paul invites the Corinthians to verify the claim directly.

Verse 8

Paul describes himself as 'one born out of due time' (an abortion or premature birth), referring to his sudden, late, and unique call to apostleship on the road to Damascus.

Verse 10

Paul uses his own labor to illustrate that divine grace is not passive; God’s enabling power is the source of his intense missionary work.

Verse 12

Paul addresses the specific theological error in Corinth: while they accepted Christ’s resurrection, some Hellenistic thinkers denied the future resurrection of believers.

Verse 14

Paul establishes the logical and theological connection: the resurrection of Christ is the indispensable foundation; remove it, and Christianity collapses entirely.

Verse 17

If Christ is still dead, the atonement is incomplete and ineffective, meaning believers are not reconciled to God but remain under condemnation for their sins.

Verse 20

The term 'firstfruits' (a harvest term) guarantees the future harvest; Christ’s resurrection is the initial installment and proof that all believers will follow.

Verse 22

This verse establishes the pattern of the two representative heads of humanity: Adam brought universal death, and Christ brings universal spiritual life to those in him.

Verse 23

Paul clarifies the order of eschatological events: Christ first, then the believers at his Parousia (Second Coming), followed by the final end.

Verse 24

The ultimate goal is the completion of God's redemptive plan, culminating in Christ handing over the perfected kingdom to the Father.

Verse 26

Death is personified as the final cosmic enemy that must be utterly conquered before the kingdom is fully established.

Verse 28

This climactic statement shows the ultimate subordination of the Son to the Father, ensuring that God the Father remains the supreme sovereign ('all in all') after redemption is complete.

Verse 29

This difficult passage likely refers to a local, contested practice used rhetorically: if the dead don't rise, why would anyone participate in a rite associated with the deceased?

Verse 32

Fighting with 'beasts' is probably metaphorical for intense, life-threatening persecution in Ephesus. If there is no resurrection, Paul’s suffering is nonsensical, and hedonism is the only rational choice.

Verse 33

This is a quote from the Greek poet Menander, a warning against the corrupting influence of those in the church who deny fundamental truths like the resurrection.

Verse 35

Paul addresses two common philosophical objections: the mechanism of rising and the nature of the body (i.e., how can a decomposed body be reanimated?).

Verse 36

Using the analogy of a seed, Paul explains that transformation requires death; the new body is structurally related to the old but vastly superior.

Verse 42

Paul introduces four contrasting pairs to describe the transformation from the mortal body ('sown') to the resurrection body ('raised').

Verse 44

The resurrection body is not a ghost but a 'spiritual body' (soma pneumatikon), meaning it is animated and controlled by the Holy Spirit, not merely human life (psyche).

Verse 45

Paul contrasts Adam, who was merely a 'living soul' (Genesis 2:7), with Christ, the 'last Adam,' who is the source of life-giving Spirit for all believers.

Verse 50

The present mortal body of 'flesh and blood' (subject to decay) is incompatible with eternal life; thus, a transformation is necessary for entry into the Kingdom.

Verse 51

The 'mystery' is a divine truth previously hidden but now revealed: believers alive at Christ's return will be instantaneously transformed without experiencing death.

Verse 52

The transformation will be instantaneous ('twinkling of an eye'), signaled by the 'last trump,' a powerful symbol of divine intervention and final judgment.

Verse 54

This verse cites and fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah 25:8, confirming that the resurrection brings the utter and permanent destruction of death.

Verse 56

Paul defines death's power structure: sin is the mechanism (the sting) that makes death fatal, and the Law gives sin its strength by defining and condemning transgression.

Verse 58

Because the resurrection is certain and victory over death is guaranteed, Paul urges the Corinthians to remain steadfast and diligent in their Christian service.

Use ← → arrow keys to navigate

1 Corinthians15

The Gospel Foundation and Resurrection Witnesses

The Certainty of Christ's Resurrection

Christ, the Firstfruits of the Resurrection

Arguments for the Resurrection

The Nature of the Resurrection Body

The Final Victory Over Death

Concluding Exhortation

Reading Style

Typeface

Font Size 19px

Options