1 Wakorintho 1
1 Paulo, uveelangiwe nu Klisite Yesu ukhuva nsuhiwa khu lugano lwa Nguluve, nu Sosthene ulukholo lwetu,
I, Paul, [am writing this letter]. Sosthenes, our fellow believer, is with [me as I write it]. [God] appointed me to be an apostle of Christ Jesus because that is what God desired.
2 khu mpelela ugwa Nguluve ugule khu Korinto, khu vavo vemekhiwe ndi tawa lya Yesu Klisite, vavo velangiwe ukhuva vanu vavalanche. Tukhovasimbela voni vavo viholetambula elitawa lya Nkhulude va vetu Yesu Klisite poponi, Nkhuludeva vavene nufwe.
[I am sending this letter] to all you who are God’s believers in Corinth [city]. You have been set apart [by God] {[God] has set you apart} for himself because (of your close relationship with/you belong to) Christ Jesus. God has appointed you to be his people and to live in a morally pure way, just like he has appointed all the people everywhere who belong to him to live in a morally pure way. You and they have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ [MTY]. He is their sovereign Lord as well as the sovereign Lord of all of us [(inc)] who have trusted in him.
3 Ulukhungu nu lulundamano luve khulyomwe ukhuhuma khwa Nguluve dada vetu na Nkhuludeva vetu Yesu Klisite.
We [(exc)] desire that God, who is our [heavenly] Father, and Jesus Christ, who is our sovereign Lord, will continue to act kindly toward you and cause you to experience [inner] peace.
4 Amanchova gooni nikhonsana uNguluve vango, khulyomwe ulwa khuva uluhungu lwa Nguluve yeyo u Klisite avapile.
I very often [HYP] thank God for you because he has acted toward you kindly, acting in ways that you do not deserve. He has done this because of your (having a close relationship with/being united to) Christ Jesus.
5 Avavekhile ukhuva vakhavi munjila nchoni, mu njovele na masage gooni.
That is, [God] has [HYP] helped you spiritually very much because of your (having a close relationship with/being united to) Christ. Specifically, God has very much [HYP] enabled you to speak messages [that his Spirit revealed to you], and he has very much enabled you to know many things [HYP] that his Spirit revealed to you.
6 Avavekhile avakhavi, ukhuva vatangeli khwa Klisite ukhuta emekhiwe ukhuva va yelweli mu ndyomwe.
In that way, [he] confirmed to you that what we [(exc)] proclaimed about Christ is true.
7 Ulwa khuva samsigalile khekongelwa fya mepo, ndu mlenuvonogwe uwa hugulila uluvonekhelo lwa Ntwa vetu Yesu Klisite.
As a result, while you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to return, within your group you truly have [LIT] every ability that [God’s] Spirit gives [to believers].
8 Alavakhangancha umwe isikhu nchoni, msite ukhudukhiwa palinchuva lya Ntwa vetu Yesu Klisite.
God will also cause you to steadfastly [trust Christ to the very end of your lives] [EUP]. The result will be that God will not consider you guilty [of any sin] when our Lord Jesus Christ returns to earth [MTY].
9 U Nguluve anyakhesa yoywa avaelangile umwe ndulundamano lwa nswambe Yesu Kliste Untwa viitu.
You can depend on God to do that. He is the one who chose you to become intimately associated with his Son, Jesus Christ, who is our Lord.
10 Leno nikhovadova valokolo vangu numwe vakhancha vangu, mu litawa lya Ntwa vitu Yesu Klisite, ukhuta mwedekhe vuve vwusipali uvwusongelekhani khulyomwe. Nikhovadova ukhuta muve pupaninie nu uvunogwe.
My fellow believers, by the authority of [MTY] our Lord Jesus Christ, I urgently appeal to all of you to agree with one another. What I mean is, stop dividing into groups. Instead, be united [MET] concerning what you understand [about spiritual matters], and be united in what you decide.
11 Avanu avambujeenge uvwa Kloe vambolile ukhuta kuna mgawanyiko unaoendelea miongoni mwenu.
My fellow believers, [I urge this] because some members of Chloe’s household have told me that you are quarreling among yourselves.
12 Vambolile ukhuta, “One nele va Paulo,” apange “One nele va Apolo”, apange “One nele va Kefa” apange “One nele va Klisite”.
That is, some of you say, “Paul is the one to whom we [are loyal],” and others say, “Peter is the one to whom we [are loyal],” and still others say, “Christ is the one to whom we [are loyal].”
13 Khukhuta u Klisite alepo pingi? Khukhuta u Paulo atoveleliwe pa khidaming'ani? apange mwaonchiwe khulitawa la Paulo?
[It is ridiculous that] [RHQ] [you are quarreling and] dividing up [into groups instead of being loyal to] Christ alone. Christ certainly has not divided himself into parts and distributed those parts out [to groups of people who oppose each other]! [MET, RHQ] I, Paul, certainly did not die on the cross for you! [RHQ] When you were baptized {When someone baptized you}, you certainly did not promise that you were submitting to me! [RHQ]
14 Nikhondemya uNguluve ukhuta sanamwonche umunu uve avinchaga, nikhumbukha Krispo nu Gayo.
I thank [God] that Crispus and Gaius were the only ones from among you whom I baptized.
15 Ele polele ukhuta asipali uveyakheva inchova ukhuta mwaonchiwe khulitawa lango.
As a result, no one [there in Corinth except those two] can say, “Paul baptized me so that I would become (his disciple/submissive to him).”
16 (Navonchinche avambujenge uvwa Stephania. Sanikhumbukha ukhuta namwonchiche umunu uveavenchaga).
[Now I remember that] I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I do not remember baptizing anyone else [there].
17 Ulwa khuva, uKlisite saansukhe khukhuoncha, nasuhi khulumbilela elimenyu. Saansukhe khulumbelela khu mamenyu aga lukhala lwakhe munu, pwu amakha aga kidaming'ani khya Klisite gasite ukhukhenchiwa.
Christ sent me not [primarily] to baptize people but to preach the good message about him. When I do that, he does not want me to use words that human philosophers [consider] wise [IRO]. I do not want the message about [what] he [accomplished when he was nailed to] the cross [MTY] to lose its power.
18 Ulwa khuva elimenyu lya kidaming'ani libediwa khu vavo vifwa. Khuvavo u Nguluve ikhovapokha, makha ga Nguluve.
Those who are perishing spiritually [because they do not believe that message consider] that the message [about what Christ accomplished when he was nailed to the] cross [MTY] [is] foolish. But to us who are being saved {whom [God] is saving} [spiritually because we believe that message], it [demonstrates that] God acts powerfully [in order to save us].
19 Ulwa khuva yesimbiwe, “Yaninangania ulukhala lwa vamanyi. Yaninangania uvumanyi vwa vanyalukhala.”
[It is like what God said that] a prophet wrote long ago, [By the things that I will do], I will show that the ideas of those who [think] [IRO] they are wise are completely useless. I will ignore the ideas that they think are [IRO] so smart.
20 Alendakhu umunu unyaluhala? Alendakhu umwembi? Alendakhu unchofi uva khelunga ehee? U Nguluve syaasyetwile ulukhala lwa khelunga ehe ukhuva vwukhonyofu? (aiōn g165)
So, do you know [what God thinks] about what [RHQ] people who [IRO] consider themselves to be wise and scholars and philosophers say? [He does not pay attention to what they say, because] [RHQ] he has shown clearly that what unbelievers [think is] [IRO] wise is [not wise at all], but is really foolish. (aiōn g165)
21 Ukhuhuma nkhelunga khevile mu ndokhala lwa kyene savamanye uNguluve mbu khonyofu vwa vene uvwa khulumbelela nu khuvapokha vavo vikhwedekha.
God, acting very wisely, made it impossible for unbelievers to know God by doing what they thought was [IRO] wise. Instead, he was happy to save those who trust [in Christ] as the result of their hearing [the message that] was proclaimed to them, a message that others consider to be foolish.
22 Khu Wayahudi vivoncha ifikhwani fya khudega khu Wayunani vilonda ulokhala.
The Jews want [people to prove, by performing] miracles, [that their message is true]. The non-Jews want to hear only messages consisting of talk that they consider to be very wise.
23 Tukhundo mbelela u Klisite yoywa khepencho khu Wayahudi nu khu Wayunani vokhonyofu.
As for us, we proclaim [the message about what] Christ [accomplished for us when] he was nailed {[when they] nailed him} to the cross. That message offends Jews [because they do not think that the Messiah will die, and] non-Jews think it is [IRO] a foolish message.
24 Pwu khu vavo vaelangiwe nu Nguluve, ava Yahudi na ava Yunani, tukhondombela u Klisite nda amakha nu lukhala lwa Nguluve.
But to us whom God has chosen to belong to himself, both Jews and non-Jews, that message shows that God acted powerfully and wisely [by sending] Christ [to die] for us.
25 Ulwa khuva uvokhonyofu vwa Nguluve vule nu lukhala khu vanu, nu uvusitamakha uvwa Nguluve vule na makha ukhulotelela khu vanu.
[Unbelievers may think] [IRO] [that] God was [acting] foolishly [by doing that], but [the truth is that] he was acting more wisely than unbelievers who [just think that] [IRO] they are wise. And unbelievers may think that God was [acting] weakly [by sending his son to die], but he was acting more powerfully than unbelievers who [just think] [IRO] [that they] act powerfully.
26 Lolaga ulwelango lwa Nguluve khulifwe, luwaoho nuve vakhancha vango. Sa mle vingi yomwe mwale nu lukhala ulwakhe vwu munu. Sa mle vingi yomwe mwale na amakha. Sa mle vingi yomwe mwaholiwe nu uvuvakha.
My fellow believers, remember what [kind of people you] were when God chose you. [Not many of you] whom he chose are people whom [unbelievers considered to be] wise. Very few of you were considered to be important. Very few of you came from families with a high social standing.
27 Ulwa khuva u Nguluve akhalile ifinu ifikhonyofu ifya nkhelunga ili fisusiwe ifinya lukhala. U Nguluve akhalile ekhe vula makha khya nkelunga ukhukesosya ekhenya makha.
Instead, it was [usually] those whom [unbelievers considered to be] foolish whom God chose. He did that in order to shame/discredit those whom [unbelievers consider] [IRO] wise. It was [usually] those [whom unbelievers] considered [IRO] unimportant whom God chose, in order to shame/discredit those whom unbelievers consider important.
28 U Nguluve akhekhalile khekhyo khya pasi khekhyo khyabediwagwa nkhelunga. Afikhalile ifinu fifyo safyavaliwe ukhuva finu, nu khufivekha ifinu ifya gaalama.
It was usually those who are despised and considered {whom [unbelievers] despise and consider} worthless whom God chose, in order to make completely ineffective [what unbelievers consider to be important].
29 Avombile evwo pwu ave asipali uvakhweyinula pamikho ga mwene.
[He did that] in order that no one could boast to God about being wise or important.
30 Pwu ikhyakhevombile Nguluve leno mlegati mwa Klisite Yesu, yoywa avombikhe mmanyani ukhukhuma khwa Nguluve. Ale lweli khulyofwe, uvovalanche nu uvupokhi.
It is because of what God [has done] that you (have a close relationship with/belong to) Christ Jesus. God [put into effect] his wise [plan to save us] by what Christ did for us. As a result of what Christ did, God erases the record of our sins, sets us apart for himself, and frees us from our being guilty [for our sins].
31 Inave uluvonekhelo, ndavovwa elimenyu linchova, “Uvikheginia, eginiage mu litawa lya ntwa.”
So, it is the Lord whom we should boast about, [not about one spiritual leader being better than another]. We should do as ([a prophet/Jeremiah]) wrote [in the Scriptures that we should do]: Those who boast should boast [only] about what the Lord [has done].
