1 Corinthians 15
1 And I make known to you, my brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, and which ye received, and in which ye stand,
But let me recall to you, brethren, the Good News which I brought you, which you accepted, and on which you are standing,
2 and by which ye have life. In what terms I preached to you, ye remember; unless ye have believed in vain.
through which also you are obtaining salvation, if you bear in mind the words in which I proclaimed it--unless indeed your faith has been unreal from the very first.
3 For I delivered to you from the first, as I had received it; that the Messiah died on account of our sins, as it is written:
For I repeated to you the all-important fact which also I had been taught, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures;
4 and that he was buried and arose on the third day, as it is written:
that He was buried; that He rose to life again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
5 and that he was seen by Cephas; and after him, by the twelve:
and was seen by Peter, and then by the Twelve.
6 and after that, he was seen by more than five hundred brethren at once; many of whom survive at the present time, and some of them sleep.
Afterwards He was seen by more than five hundred brethren at once, most of whom are still alive, although some of them have now fallen asleep.
7 And subsequently to this, he was seen by James; and after him, by all the legates.
Afterwards He was seen by James, and then by all the Apostles.
8 And last of them all, he was seen by me, as it were by an abortion.
And last of all, as to one of untimely birth, He appeared to me also.
9 I am the least of the legates; and am not worthy to be called a legate; because I persecuted the church of God.
For I am the least of the Apostles, and am not fit to be called an Apostle--because I persecuted the Church of God.
10 But by the grace of God, I am what I am: and his grace, that was in me, was not in vain; but I labored more than they all: -not I, but his grace that was with me.
But what I am I am by the grace of God, and His grace bestowed upon me did not prove ineffectual. But I labored more strenuously than all the rest--yet it was not I, but God's grace working with me.
11 Whether I, therefore, or whether they, so we preached; and so ye believed.
But whether it is I or they, this is the way we preach and the way that you came to believe.
12 And if the Messiah is proclaimed, as rising from the dead; how is it that there are some among you, who say, There is no reviviscence of the dead?
But if Christ is preached as having risen from the dead, how is it that some of you say that there is no such thing as a resurrection of the dead?
13 And if there is no reviviscence of the dead, the Messiah also hath not risen.
If there is no such thing as a resurrection of the dead, then Christ Himself has not risen to life.
14 And if the Messiah hath not risen, our preaching is vain, and your faith also vain.
And if Christ has not risen, it follows that what we preach is a delusion, and that your faith also is a delusion.
15 And we too are found false witnesses of God; for we have testified concerning God, that he raised up the Messiah, when he did not raise him up.
Nay more, we are actually being discovered to be bearing false witness about God, because we have testified that God raised Christ to life, whom He did not raise, if in reality none of the dead are raised.
16 For, if the dead will not arise, the Messiah also hath not risen.
For if none of the dead are raised to life, then Christ has not risen;
17 And if the Messiah rose not, your faith is inane; and ye are yet in your sins:
and if Christ has not risen, your faith is a vain thing--you are still in your sins.
18 and also, doubtless, they who have fallen asleep in the Messiah, have perished.
It follows also that those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
19 And if, in this life only, we have hope in the Messiah, we are the most miserable of all men.
If in this present life we have a hope resting on Christ, and nothing more, we are more to be pitied than all the rest of the world.
20 But now the Messiah hath risen from the dead, and become the first-fruits of them that slept.
But, in reality, Christ has risen from among the dead, being the first to do so of those who are asleep.
21 And as by a man came death, so also by a man came the reviviscence of the dead.
For seeing that death came through man, through man comes also the resurrection of the dead.
22 For as it was by Adam, that all men die, so also by the Messiah they all live:
For just as through Adam all die, so also through Christ all will be made alive again.
23 every one in his order; the Messiah was the first-fruits; afterwards, they that are the Messiah's, at his coming.
But this will happen to each in the right order--Christ having been the first to rise, and afterwards Christ's people rising at His return.
24 And then will be the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God the Father; when every prince, and every sovereign, and all powers shall have come to naught.
Later on, comes the End, when He is to surrender the Kingship to God, the Father, when He shall have overthrown all other government and all other authority and power.
25 For he is to reign, until he shall put all his enemies under his feet.
For He must continue King until He shall have put all His enemies under His feet.
26 And the last enemy, death, will be abolished.
The last enemy that is to be overthrown is Death;
27 For he hath subjected all under his feet. But when he said, that every thing is subjected to him, it is manifest that he is excepted, who subjected all to him.
for He will have put all things in subjection under His feet. And when He shall have declared that "All things are in subjection," it will be with the manifest exception of Him who has reduced them all to subjection to Him.
28 And when all shall be subjected to him, then the Son himself will be subject to him who subjected all to him, so that God will be all in all.
But when the whole universe has been made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also become subject to Him who has made the universe subject to Him, in order that GOD may be all in all.
29 Otherwise, what shall they do who are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not? Why are they baptized for the dead?
Otherwise what will become of those who got themselves baptized for the dead? If the dead do not rise at all, why are these baptized for them?
30 And why also do we stand every hour in peril?
Why also do we Apostles expose ourselves to danger every hour?
31 I protest, my brethren, by your exultation, which is mine in our Lord Jesus the Messiah, that I die daily.
I protest, brethren, as surely as I glory over you--which I may justly do in Christ Jesus our Lord--that I die day by day.
32 If, as amongst men, I was cast to wild beasts at Ephesus, what did it profit me, if the dead rise not? " Let us eat and drink; for to-morrow we die."
If from merely human motives I have fought with wild beasts in Ephesus, what profit is it to me? If the dead do not rise, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we are to die.
33 Be not deceived; " Evil stories corrupt well-disposed minds."
Do not deceive yourselves: "Evil companionships corrupt good morals."
34 Let your hearts be righteously excited, and sin not: for there are some, in whom is not the love of God: it is to your shame, I say it.
Wake from this drunken fit; live righteous lives, and cease to sin; for some have no knowledge of God: I speak thus in order to move you to shame.
35 But some one of you may say: How will the dead arise? and with what body will they come forth?
But some one will say, "How can the dead rise? And with what kind of body do they come back?"
36 Foolish man! The seed which thou sowest, is not quickened, unless it die.
Foolish man! the seed you yourself sow has no life given to it unless it first dies;
37 And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not the body that is to be, but the naked kernel of wheat or barley, or of the other grains:
and as for what you sow, it is not the plant which is to be that you are sowing, but a bare grain, of wheat (it may be) or of something else, and God gives it a body as He has seen fit,
38 and God giveth it a body, as he pleaseth; and to each of the grains its natural body.
and to each kind of seed a body of its own.
39 And every body is not alike; for the body of a man is one thing, and that of a beast is another, and that of a bird is another, and that of a fish is another.
All flesh is not the same: there is human flesh, and flesh of cattle, of birds, and of fishes.
40 And there are bodies celestial, and bodies terrestrial; but the glory of the celestial bodies is one, and that of the terrestrial is another.
There are bodies which are celestial and there are bodies which are earthly, but the glory of the celestial ones is one thing, and that of the earthly ones is another.
41 And the glory of the sun is one thing, and the glory of the moon is another, and the glory of the stars is another; and one star exceedeth another star in glory.
There is one glory of the sun, another of the moon, and another of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
42 So also in the reviviscence of the dead. They are sown in corruption, they arise without corruption:
It is the same with the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in a state of decay, it is raised free from decay;
43 they are sown in dishonor, they arise in glory: they are sown in weakness, they arise in power:
it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;
44 it is sown an animal body, it ariseth a spiritual body. For there is a body of the animal life, and there is a body of the spirit.
an animal body is sown, a spiritual body is raised. As surely as there is an animal body, so there is also a spiritual body.
45 So also is it written: " Adam, the first man, became a living soul;" the second Adam became a quickening spirit.
In the same way also it is written, "The first man Adam became a living animal"; the last Adam is a life-giving Spirit.
46 And the spiritual was not first; but the animal, and then the spiritual.
Nevertheless, it is not what is spiritual that came first, but what is animal; what is spiritual came afterwards.
47 The first man was of dust from the earth; the second man was the Lord from heaven.
The first man is a man of earth, earthy; the second man is from Heaven.
48 As he was of the dust, so also those who are of the dust; and as was he who was from heaven, so also are the heavenly.
What the earthy one is, that also are those who are earthy; and what the heavenly One is, that also are those who are heavenly.
49 And as we have worn the likeness of him from the dust, so shall we wear the likeness of him from heaven.
And as we have borne a resemblance to the earthy one, let us see to it that we also bear a resemblance to the heavenly One.
50 But this I say, my brethren that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven: neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
But this I tell you, brethren: our mortal bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, nor will what is perishable inherit what is imperishable.
51 Lo, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
I tell you a truth hitherto kept secret: we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
52 suddenly, as in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet, when it shall sound; and the dead will arise, without corruption; and we shall be changed.
in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the sounding of the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incapable of decay, and we shall be changed.
53 For this which is corruptible, is to put on incorruption; and that which dieth, will put on immortality.
For so it must be: this perishable nature must clothe itself with what is imperishable, and this mortality must clothe itself with immortality.
54 And when this that is corruptible, shall put on incorruption, and this that dieth, immortality; then will take place the word that is written, " Death is absorbed in victory."
But when this perishable nature has put on what is imperishable, and this mortality has put on immortality, then will the words of Scripture be fulfilled, "Death has been swallowed up in victory."
"Where, O death, is thy victory? Where, O death, is thy sting?" (Hadēs g86)
56 Now the sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
Now sin is the sting of death, and sin derives its power from the Law;
57 But thanks be to God, that giveth us the victory, through our Lord Jesus the Messiah.
but God be thanked who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
58 Wherefore, my brethren and my beloved, be ye steadfast, and be not vacillating; but be ye at all times abundant in the work of the Lord; seeing ye know, that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
Therefore, my dear brethren, be firm, unmovable, busily occupied at all times in the Lord's work, knowing that your toil is not fruitless in the Lord.
