1 Corinthians1

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, greets the Corinthian church, giving thanks for their spiritual enrichment and calling. He immediately addresses severe divisions within the congregation, where members align themselves with different leaders like Paul, Apollos, or Cephas, urging them to unity in Christ. Paul then contrasts worldly wisdom with the divine 'foolishness' of preaching Christ crucified, which is the true power and wisdom of God unto salvation.

Salutation and Authorship

From: Sha’ul, called by God’s will to be an emissary of the Messiah Yeshua; and from brother Sosthenes

To: God’s Messianic community in Corinth, consisting of those who have been set apart by Yeshua the Messiah and called to be God’s holy people — along with everyone everywhere who calls on the name of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, their Lord as well as ours:

Grace to you and shalom from God our Father and the Lord Yeshua the Messiah.

Thanksgiving for Spiritual Gifts

I thank my God always for you because of God’s love and kindness given to you through the Messiah Yeshua,

in that you have been enriched by him in so many ways, particularly in power of speech and depth of knowledge.

Indeed, the testimony about the Messiah has become firmly established in you;

so that you are not lacking any spiritual gift and are eagerly awaiting the revealing of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah.

He will enable you to hold out until the end and thus be blameless on the Day of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah —

God is trustworthy: it was he who called you into fellowship with his Son, Yeshua the Messiah, our Lord.

Plea for Unity and Against Divisions

Nevertheless, brothers, I call on you in the name of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah to agree, all of you, in what you say, and not to let yourselves remain split into factions but be restored to having a common mind and a common purpose.

For some of Chloe’s people have made it known to me, my brothers, that there are quarrels among you.

I say this because one of you says, “I follow Sha’ul”; another says, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Kefa”; while still another says, “I follow the Messiah!”

Has the Messiah been split in pieces? Was it Sha’ul who was put to death on a stake for you? Were you immersed into the name of Sha’ul?

I thank God that I didn’t immerse any of you except Crispus and Gaius —

otherwise someone might say that you were indeed immersed into my name.

(Oh yes, I did also immerse Stephanas and his household; beyond that, I can’t remember whether I immersed anyone else.)

For the Messiah did not send me to immerse but to proclaim the Good News — and to do it without relying on “wisdom” that consists of mere rhetoric, so as not to rob the Messiah’s execution-stake of its power.

The Cross: God's Power, Human Foolishness

For the message about the execution-stake is nonsense to those in the process of being destroyed, but to us in the process of being saved it is the power of God.

Indeed, the Tanakh says, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and frustrate the intelligence of the intelligent.”

Where does that leave the philosopher, the Torah-teacher, or any of today’s thinkers? Hasn’t God made this world’s wisdom look pretty foolish?

For God’s wisdom ordained that the world, using its own wisdom, would not come to know him. Therefore God decided to use the “nonsense” of what we proclaim as his means of saving those who come to trust in it.

Precisely because Jews ask for signs and Greeks try to find wisdom,

we go on proclaiming a Messiah executed on a stake as a criminal! To Jews this is an obstacle, and to Greeks it is nonsense;

but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, this same Messiah is God’s power and God’s wisdom!

For God’s “nonsense” is wiser than humanity’s “wisdom.” And God’s “weakness” is stronger than humanity’s “strength.”

God Chooses the Weak and Lowly

Just look at yourselves, brothers — look at those whom God has called! Not many of you are wise by the world’s standards, not many wield power or boast noble birth.

But God chose what the world considers nonsense in order to shame the wise; God chose what the world considers weak in order to shame the strong;

and God chose what the world looks down on as common or regards as nothing in order to bring to nothing what the world considers important;

so that no one should boast before God.

It is his doing that you are united with the Messiah Yeshua. He has become wisdom for us from God, and righteousness and holiness and redemption as well!

Therefore — as the Tanakh says — “Let anyone who wants to boast, boast about Adonai.”

Study Notes for 1 Corinthians 1

Verse 1

Paul emphasizes his apostolic authority, stressing that his calling was not self-appointed but originated 'through the will of God.' Sosthenes, likely Paul’s amanuensis (scribe) or a prominent leader in Corinth (possibly the former synagogue ruler mentioned in Acts 18:17), is included in the greeting.

Verse 2

The recipients are described as 'sanctified in Christ Jesus,' meaning they are set apart by God for holy use. Paul addresses the local church in Corinth while simultaneously including the universal church ('all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ').

Verse 4

Paul begins with a traditional expression of thanks, acknowledging that the spiritual gifts (charismata) present in Corinth are evidence of God’s grace, despite the profound ethical and relational problems he is about to address.

Verse 5

The Corinthians were 'enriched' in spiritual abilities, specifically in 'utterance' (speech/tongues/preaching) and 'knowledge.' These gifts, which the Corinthians later misused, are the very reason Paul dedicates extensive teaching to them in Chapters 12–14.

Verse 7

The phrase 'waiting for the coming' refers to the Parousia, the promised second arrival of Christ. This eschatological hope is a source of perseverance and moral urgency for the believers.

Verse 9

The foundation of the believers’ security is not their own strength or gifts, but the absolute faithfulness of God, who initiated their calling into 'fellowship' (koinōnia) with his Son.

Verse 10

Paul moves immediately to the primary issue: chronic division (schismata). He appeals 'by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,' emphasizing that their unity must be centered on Christ’s authority, not human preference.

Verse 11

The 'house of Chloe' refers to members of a household or business group who traveled from Corinth to Ephesus (where Paul was writing from), providing reliable intelligence about the church’s internal conflicts.

Verse 12

The contentions involved forming allegiance to specific Christian leaders (Paul, Apollos, Cephas/Peter). This suggests competitive loyalty based perhaps on perceived rhetorical skill or personal connection to the apostle.

Verse 13

These rhetorical questions expose the absurdity of the divisions. Christ cannot be divided, nor can human leaders replace Christ as the object of salvation or the one in whose name baptism is administered.

Verse 14

Crispus and Gaius were among the few converts Paul personally baptized. Crispus was a former ruler of the synagogue (Acts 18:8); Gaius was Paul’s host during his time in Corinth (Rom. 16:23).

Verse 17

Paul clarifies his core mission: preaching the gospel, not performing the rite of baptism or using impressive, persuasive 'wisdom of words' (sophia logou). The powerful simplicity of the cross must not be obscured by human eloquence.

Verse 18

This verse presents the theological core of the letter. The message of the cross acts as a dividing line: it is 'foolishness' to those who reject it, but it reveals the 'power of God' to those who are saved.

Verse 19

Paul quotes Isaiah 29:14 (LXX) to demonstrate that the humbling of human wisdom and intellect is a long-foretold divine plan.

Verse 20

The 'wise,' 'scribe,' and 'disputer' represent the intellectual elite, philosophers, and religious scholars of the Greco-Roman and Jewish worlds, whose highest achievements are rendered irrelevant by the Gospel.

Verse 21

Paradoxically, God chose 'the foolishness of preaching' (referring to the simple, unadorned message of the cross) as the means of salvation because the world, through its own philosophical 'wisdom,' failed to grasp God.

Verse 22

Paul identifies the two main cultural obstacles to the Gospel: Jews sought miraculous proofs ('signs'), while Greeks valued sophisticated philosophical systems ('wisdom').

Verse 23

The message of 'Christ crucified' was an offense (a 'stumblingblock,' skandalon) to Jews because a crucified Messiah did not fit their expectation of a conquering king, and it was intellectually absurd ('foolishness') to Greeks.

Verse 24

To those called by God, the crucified Christ is revealed as the ultimate paradox: the means by which God expresses both His saving power and His deepest wisdom.

Verse 26

Paul applies the theology of the cross to the composition of the Corinthian church itself, noting that few members belonged to the socially elite (wise, mighty, noble) classes of Corinth.

Verse 27

God deliberately chooses the socially disadvantaged and intellectually weak to shame the powerful. This is God’s consistent methodology throughout salvation history.

Verse 29

The ultimate purpose of God’s choice of the weak is to eliminate all human boasting or self-glorying. Salvation is entirely a divine work, removing any basis for human pride.

Verse 30

In contrast to relying on human wisdom, the believer’s standing is found entirely in Christ, who fulfills the four key needs of salvation: wisdom (guidance), righteousness (justification), sanctification (holiness), and redemption (deliverance).

Verse 31

Paul concludes his opening argument by citing Jeremiah 9:24, providing the theological mandate for the entire discussion: true glory is found only in the Lord, not in human accomplishments or preferred leaders.

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1 Corinthians1

Salutation and Authorship

Thanksgiving for Spiritual Gifts

Plea for Unity and Against Divisions

The Cross: God's Power, Human Foolishness

God Chooses the Weak and Lowly

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