1 Corinthians 9
Christian Standard Bible
Paul’s Example as an Apostle
9 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? 2 If I am not an apostle to others, at least I am to you, because you are the seal(A) of my apostleship in the Lord.
3 My defense to those who examine me is this: 4 Don’t we have the right to eat and drink?(B) 5 Don’t we have the right to be accompanied by a believing wife[a] like the other apostles,(C) the Lord’s brothers, and Cephas?(D) 6 Or do only Barnabas(E) and I have no right to refrain from working? 7 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?(F) Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who shepherds a flock and does not drink the milk from the flock?
8 Am I saying this from a human perspective? Doesn’t the law also say the same thing? 9 For it is written in the law of Moses, Do not muzzle an ox(G) while it treads out grain.[b](H) Is God really concerned about oxen? 10 Isn’t he really saying it for our sake? Yes, this is written for our sake,(I) because he who plows ought to plow in hope,(J) and he who threshes should thresh in hope of sharing the crop.(K) 11 If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it too much if we reap material benefits from you? 12 If others have this right to receive benefits from you, don’t we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right; instead, we endure everything(L) so that we will not hinder the gospel of Christ.
13 Don’t you know that those who perform the temple services eat the food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar(M) share in the offerings of the altar? 14 In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should earn their living by the gospel.(N)
15 For my part I have used none of these rights, nor have I written these things that they may be applied in my case. For it would be better for me to die than for anyone to deprive me of my boast! 16 For if I preach the gospel, I have no reason to boast, because I am compelled to preach[c]—and woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! 17 For if I do this willingly, I have a reward, but if unwillingly, I am entrusted(O) with a commission. 18 What then is my reward? To preach the gospel and offer it free of charge and not make full use of my rights in the gospel.(P)
19 Although I am free from all and not anyone’s slave, I have made myself a slave to everyone, in order to win(Q) more people. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win Jews; to those under the law, like one under the law—though I myself am not under the law[d]—to win those under the law.(R) 21 To those who are without the law,(S) like one without the law—though I am not without God’s law but under the law of Christ—to win those without the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, in order to win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some.(T) 23 Now I do all this because of the gospel, so that I may share in the blessings.
24 Don’t you know that the runners in a stadium all race,(U) but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way to win the prize.(V) 25 Now everyone who competes exercises self-control(W) in everything. They do it to receive a perishable crown,(X) but we an imperishable crown. 26 So I do not run like one who runs aimlessly or box like one beating the air. 27 Instead, I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified.(Y)
1 Corinthians 9
New Testament for Everyone
The “rights” of an apostle
9 I’m a free man, aren’t I? I’m an apostle, aren’t I? I’ve seen Jesus our Lord, haven’t I? You are my work in the Lord, aren’t you? 2 I may not be an apostle to other people, but I certainly am to you; in fact, you are the authorized stamp of my apostleship in the Lord.
3 This is the defense I make to anyone who wants to bring a charge against me. 4 Do we not have the right to eat and drink? 5 Do we not have the right to take a Christian wife with us on our travels, as the other apostles do, as the Lord’s brothers do, as Cephas does? 6 Or are Barnabas and I the only ones who don’t have the right to be set free from the need to work? 7 Who serves in the army at their own expense? Who plants a vineyard and doesn’t eat its fruit? Who looks after animals and doesn’t drink the milk?
8 I’m not just using human illustrations to make the point; the law says the same thing, doesn’t it? 9 This is what is written in Moses’s law: “You must not muzzle a threshing ox.” God isn’t concerned for oxen, is he? 10 Doesn’t it refer completely to us? Yes, it does—because it’s written that the one who ploughs should do so in hope of the produce, and the thresher should thresh in hope of a share in the crop. 11 So if we have sown spiritual things among you, is it such a big thing that we should reap worldly things? 12 If others have that kind of right over you, don’t we have it even more?
Giving up rights for the gospel
But we haven’t made use of this right. Instead, we put up with everything, so as to place no obstacle in the way of the Messiah’s gospel.
13 Don’t you know that those who work in the Temple eat the Temple food, and those who serve at the altar share in the food from the altar? 14 In the same way the Lord has laid it down that those who announce the gospel should get their living from the gospel.
15 But I haven’t made use of any of this. I’m not writing this in order to make it happen like this for me. It would be better for me to die than . . . Nobody’s going to deprive me of my boast! 16 If I announce the gospel, you see, that’s no reason for me to be proud. I’m under compulsion! Woe betide me if I don’t announce the gospel! 17 If I do it willingly, I have a reward; if I do it unwillingly—well, this is the commission that’s been entrusted to me! 18 So what is my reward? Just this: that when I announce the gospel I should give it away free of charge; that I shouldn’t make use of my rights in the gospel.
The apostle’s freedom—to be enslaved to everyone
19 The reason for all this is as follows. I am indeed free from everyone; but I have enslaved myself to everyone, so that I can win all the more. 20 I became like a Jew to the Jews, to win Jews. I became like someone under the law to the people who are under the law, even though I’m not myself under the law, so that I could win those under the law. 21 To the lawless I became like someone lawless (even though I’m not lawless before God, but under the Messiah’s law), so that I could win the lawless. 22 I became weak to the weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that in all ways I might save some. 23 I do it all because of the gospel, so that I can be a partner in its benefits.
The Christian athlete
24 Don’t you know that when people run on the racetrack everybody runs, but only one person gets the prize? Run in such a way that you’ll win it. 25 Everyone who goes in for athletics exercises self-discipline in everything. They do it to gain a crown that perishes; we do it for an imperishable one. 26 Well then: I don’t run in an aimless fashion! I don’t box like someone punching the air! 27 No: I give my body rough treatment, and make it my slave, in case, after announcing the message to others, I myself should end up being disqualified.
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
Scripture quotations from The New Testament for Everyone are copyright © Nicholas Thomas Wright 2011, 2018, 2019.
