1 Corinthians 3 - Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Working Together for God

3 My friends, you are acting like the people of this world. That's why I could not speak to you as spiritual people. You are like babies as far as your faith in Christ is concerned. 2 (A) So I had to treat you like babies and feed you milk. You could not take solid food, and you still cannot, 3 because you are not yet spiritual. You are jealous and argue with each other. This proves you are not spiritual and you are acting like the people of this world.

4 (B) Some of you say you follow me, and others claim to follow Apollos. Isn't this how ordinary people behave? 5 Apollos and I are merely servants who helped you to have faith. It was the Lord who made it all happen. 6 (C) I planted the seeds, Apollos watered them, but God made them sprout and grow. 7 What matters isn't those who planted or watered, but God who made the plants grow. 8 The one who plants is just as important as the one who waters. And each one will be paid for what they do. 9 Apollos and I work together for God, and you are God's garden and God's building.

Only One Foundation

10 God treated me with undeserved grace and let me become an expert builder. I laid a foundation on which others have built. But we must each be careful how we build, 11 because Christ is the only foundation. 12-13 Whatever we build on this foundation will be tested by fire on the day of judgment. Then everyone will find out if we have used gold, silver, and precious stones, or wood, hay, and straw. 14 We will be rewarded if our building is left standing. 15 But if it is destroyed by the fire, we will lose everything. Yet we ourselves will be saved, like someone escaping from flames.

16 (D) All of you surely know you are God's temple and his Spirit lives in you. 17 Together you are God's holy temple, and God will destroy anyone who destroys his temple.

18 Don't fool yourselves! If any of you think you are wise in the things of this world, you will have to become foolish before you can be truly wise. 19 (E) This is because God considers the wisdom of this world to be foolish. It is just as the Scriptures say, “God catches the wise when they try to outsmart him.” 20 (F) The Scriptures also say, “The Lord knows that the plans made by wise people are useless.” 21-22 So stop bragging about what anyone has done. Paul and Apollos and Peter[a] all belong to you. In fact, everything is yours, including the world, life, death, the present, and the future. Everything belongs to you, 23 and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

Footnotes

  1. 3.21,22 Peter: See the note at 1.12.

Cross references

  1. 3.2 : He 5.12,13.
  2. 3.4 : 1 Co 1.12.
  3. 3.6 a : Ac 18.4-11; b Ac 18.24-28.
  4. 3.16 : 1 Co 6.19; 2 Co 6.16.
  5. 3.19 : Job 5.13.
  6. 3.20 : Ps 94.11.

You Might Also Like:

1 Corinthians 3 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

3 And I, brethren, was not able to speak to you as to spiritual, but as to fleshly -- as to babes in Christ; 2 with milk I fed you, and not with meat, for ye were not yet able, but not even yet are ye now able, 3 for yet ye are fleshly, for where [there is] among you envying, and strife, and divisio...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

3 And I, brethren, might not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to fleshly men [but as to fleshly]; as to little children in Christ, 2 I gave to you milk to drink, not meat; for ye might not yet understand, neither ye be able to now [but neither now soothly ye be able], 3 for yet ye be flesh...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - Worldwide English (New Testament) (WE)

3 My brothers, I could not talk to you at first as to people who have the Spirit of God. But I talked to you as people who have the spirit of this world. I talked to you as people who are very new-born, baby Christians. 2 I gave you milk to drink, not food to eat. You were not ready for food. And ev...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - World English Bible (WEB)

3 Brothers, I couldn’t speak to you as to spiritual, but as to fleshly, as to babies in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not with meat; for you weren’t yet ready. Indeed, you aren’t ready even now, 3 for you are still fleshly. For insofar as there is jealousy, strife, and factions among you, aren’t ...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - The Voice (VOICE)

3 My brothers and sisters, I cannot address you as people who walk by the Spirit; I have to speak to you as people who tend to think in merely human terms, as spiritual infants in the Anointed One. 2 I nursed you with milk, as a mother would feed her baby, because you were not, and still are not, d...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Building Together on God’s Foundation3 And I, brothers and sisters, could not speak to you as Spirit-filled but as worldly[a]—as infants in Messiah. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready. Indeed, even now you are not yet ready, 3 for you are still worldly. For since there i...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

On Divisions in the Corinthian Church3 But I, brethren, could not address you as spiritual men, but as men of the flesh, as babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food; for you were not ready for it; and even yet you are not ready, 3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is je...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - Revised Geneva Translation (RGT)

3 And I could not speak to you, brothers, as to spiritual men, but as to carnal, as to infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk to drink, and not solid food. For you were not yet able to bear it, nor are you able even now. 3 For you are still fleshly, since there is among you envying and strife and divi...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - New Testament for Everyone (NTE)

3 In my own case, my dear family, I couldn’t speak to you as spiritual people, but as people who were all too obviously merely human, little babies in the Messiah. 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, because you weren’t able to take it – and you still can’t, even now! 3 You’re still determined ...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

On Divisions in the Corinthian Church3 And so, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people but rather as fleshly, as infants in Christ.(A)2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for solid food. Even now you are still not ready,(B)3 for you are still flesh...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - New Matthew Bible (NMB)

Paul rebukes the sects, and authors of sects. Christ is the foundation of his church. We must take heed how we build on this foundation. No one ought to glory in men, but in God. 3 And I could not speak to you brethren as to spiritual people, but as to carnal; even, as it were, to babes in Christ. ...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - New Living Translation (NLT)

Paul and Apollos, Servants of Christ3 Dear brothers and sisters,[a] when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people.[b] I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in Christ. 2 I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because yo...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - New Life Version (NLV)

3 Christian brothers, I could not speak to you as to full-grown Christians. I spoke to you as men who have not obeyed the things you have been taught. I spoke to you as if you were baby Christians. 2 My teaching was as if I were giving you milk to drink. I could not give you meat because you were n...
Read More

1 Corinthians 3 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Sectarianism Is Carnal3 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to (A)babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with (B)milk and not with solid food; (C)for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; 3 for you are still carnal. Fo...
Read More