Paul’s Proclamation

When I came to you, brothers, announcing the testimony[a] of God to you, I did not come with brilliance(A) of speech(B) or wisdom. For I didn’t think it was a good idea to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.(C) I came to you in weakness,(D) in fear,(E) and in much trembling.(F) My speech(G) and my proclamation were not with persuasive(H) words of wisdom[b] but with a powerful demonstration by the Spirit, so that your faith might not be based on men’s wisdom but on God’s power.(I)

Spiritual Wisdom

However, we do speak a wisdom among the mature,(J) but not a wisdom of this age, or of the rulers(K) of this age, who are coming to nothing.(L) On the contrary, we speak God’s hidden wisdom in a mystery, a wisdom God predestined(M) before the ages for our glory.(N) None of the rulers of this age knew this wisdom, for if they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.(O) But as it is written:

What eye did not see and ear did not hear,
and what never entered the human mind—
God prepared this for those who love Him.(P)[c]

10 Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, for the Spirit searches everything,(Q) even the depths of God.(R) 11 For who among men knows the thoughts[d] of a man except the spirit(S) of the man that is in him? In the same way, no one knows(T) the thoughts[e] of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who comes from God, so that we may understand what has been freely given to us by God. 13 We also speak these things, not in words(U) taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual things to spiritual people.[f] 14 But the unbeliever[g] does not welcome what comes from God’s Spirit, because it is foolishness to him; he is not able to understand it since it is evaluated[h] spiritually. 15 The spiritual person, however, can evaluate[i] everything, yet he himself cannot be evaluated[j] by anyone. 16 For

who has known the Lord’s mind,
that he may instruct Him?(V)[k]

But we have the mind of Christ.(W)

Footnotes

  1. 1 Corinthians 2:1 Other mss read mystery
  2. 1 Corinthians 2:4 Other mss read human wisdom
  3. 1 Corinthians 2:9 Is 52:15; 64:4
  4. 1 Corinthians 2:11 Or things
  5. 1 Corinthians 2:11 Or things
  6. 1 Corinthians 2:13 Or things with spiritual words
  7. 1 Corinthians 2:14 Or unspiritual; lit natural
  8. 1 Corinthians 2:14 Or judged, or discerned
  9. 1 Corinthians 2:15 Or judge, or discern
  10. 1 Corinthians 2:15 Or judged, or discerned
  11. 1 Corinthians 2:16 Is 40:13

¶ Así que, hermanos, cuando fui a vosotros, no fui con altivez de palabra, o de sabiduría, a anunciaros el testimonio de Dios.

Porque no me juzgué saber algo entre vosotros, sino a Jesús, el Cristo, y a éste colgado en el madero.

Y estuve yo con vosotros con flaqueza, y mucho temor y temblor.

Y ni mi palabra ni mi predicación fue en palabras persuasivas de humana sabiduría, sino en demostración del Espíritu y de potencia;

para que vuestra fe no esté fundada en sabiduría de hombres, sino en potencia de Dios.

¶ Pero hablamos sabiduría de Dios perfectísima; y sabiduría, no de este siglo, ni de los príncipes de este siglo, que se deshacen,

sino hablamos sabiduría de Dios en misterio, la sabiduría ocultada; la cual Dios predestinó antes de los siglos para nuestra gloria;

la que ninguno de los príncipes de este siglo conoció (porque si la hubieran conocido, nunca habrían colgado en el madero al Señor de gloria);

antes, como está escrito: Lo que ojo no vio, ni oreja oyó, ni ha subido en corazón de hombre, es lo que Dios ha preparado para aquellos que le aman.

10 Pero Dios nos lo reveló a nosotros por su Espíritu; porque el Espíritu todo lo escudriña, aun lo profundo de Dios.

11 Porque ¿quién de los hombres sabe las cosas del hombre, sino el espíritu del mismo hombre que está en él? Así tampoco nadie conoció las cosas que son de Dios, sino el Espíritu de Dios.

12 Y nosotros no hemos recibido el espíritu del mundo, sino el Espíritu que es venido de Dios, para que conozcamos lo que Dios nos ha dado;

13 lo cual también hablamos, no con doctas palabras de humana sabiduría, sino con doctrina del Espíritu Santo, acomodando lo espiritual por medio de lo espiritual.

14 Pero el hombre animal no percibe las cosas que son del Espíritu de Dios, porque le son locura; y no las puede entender, porque se han de discernir espiritualmente.

15 Pero el espiritual discierne todas las cosas; mas él de nadie es discernido.

16 Porque ¿quién conoció el entendimiento del Señor? ¿Quién le instruyó? Mas nosotros tenemos el entendimiento de Cristo.

And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom(A) as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.[a] For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.(B) I came to you(C) in weakness(D) with great fear and trembling.(E) My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words,(F) but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,(G) so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.(H)

God’s Wisdom Revealed by the Spirit

We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature,(I) but not the wisdom of this age(J) or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.(K) No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery(L) that has been hidden(M) and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age(N) understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.(O) However, as it is written:

“What no eye has seen,
    what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”[b]
    the things God has prepared for those who love him—(P)

10 these are the things God has revealed(Q) to us by his Spirit.(R)

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts(S) except their own spirit(T) within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 What we have received is not the spirit(U) of the world,(V) but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. 13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom(W) but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.[c] 14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God(X) but considers them foolishness,(Y) and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. 15 The person with the Spirit(Z) makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, 16 for,

“Who has known the mind of the Lord
    so as to instruct him?”[d](AA)

But we have the mind of Christ.(AB)

Footnotes

  1. 1 Corinthians 2:1 Some manuscripts proclaimed to you God’s mystery
  2. 1 Corinthians 2:9 Isaiah 64:4
  3. 1 Corinthians 2:13 Or Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual
  4. 1 Corinthians 2:16 Isaiah 40:13