²⁴ Now a Jew named ^(A)Apollos, an ^(B)Alexandrian by birth, ^[a]an eloquent man, came to ^(C)Ephesus; and he was proficient in the Scriptures. ²⁵ This man had been instructed in ^(D)the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was accurately speaking and teaching things about Jesus, being acquainted only with ^(E)the baptism of John; ²⁶ and ^[b]he began speaking boldly in the synagogue. But when ^(F)Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained ^(G)the way of God more accurately to him. ²⁷ And when he wanted to go across to ^(H)Achaia, ^(I)the brothers encouraged him and wrote to ^(J)the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly ^[c]helped those who had believed through grace, ²⁸ for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating ^(K)by the Scriptures that ^(L)Jesus was the ^[d]Christ.

Paul in Ephesus

19 Now it happened that while ^(M)Apollos was in ^(N)Corinth, Paul passed through the ^(O)upper country and came to ^(P)Ephesus, and found some disciples. ² He said to them, “^(Q)Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said to him, “On the contrary, ^(R)we have not even heard if there is a Holy Spirit.” ³ And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” And they said, “^(S)Into John’s baptism.” ⁴ Paul said, “^(T)John baptized with a baptism of repentance, telling the people ^(U)to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” ⁵ When they heard this, they were ^(V)baptized ^[e]in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶ And when Paul had ^(W)laid hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them and they began ^(X)speaking with tongues and ^(Y)prophesying. ⁷ There were about twelve men in all.

⁸ And he entered ^(Z)the synagogue and continued speaking out boldly for three months, having discussions and persuading them ^(AA)about the kingdom of God. ⁹ But when ^(AB)some were becoming hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of ^[f](AC)the Way before the ^[g]people, he withdrew from them and took ^(AD)the disciples away with him, and had discussions daily in the school of Tyrannus. ¹⁰ This took place for ^(AE)two years, so that all who lived in ^[h](AF)Asia heard ^(AG)the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

Miracles at Ephesus

¹¹ God was performing ^(AH)extraordinary ^[i]miracles by the hands of Paul, ^12 (AI)so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and ^(AJ)the evil spirits went out. ¹³ But also some of the Jewish ^(AK)exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to ^[j]use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had the evil spirits, saying, “I order you in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches!” ¹⁴ Now there were seven sons of ^[k]Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, doing this. ¹⁵ But the evil spirit responded and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know of Paul, but who are you?” ¹⁶ And the man in whom was the evil spirit, pounced on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. ¹⁷ This became known to all who lived in ^(AL)Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified. ¹⁸ Also many of those who had believed kept coming, confessing and disclosing their practices. ¹⁹ And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone; and they added up the prices of ^[l]the books and found it to be fifty thousand ^[m](AM)pieces of silver. ²⁰ So ^[n](AN)the word of the Lord ^(AO)was growing and prevailing mightily.

Appeal to Unity

1 Paul, ^(A)called as an apostle of Jesus Christ ^[a]by ^(B)the will of God, and our ^(C)brother ^(D)Sosthenes,

² To ^(E)the church of God which is in ^(F)Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, ^[b]saints ^(G)by calling, with all who in every place ^(H)call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:

^3 (I)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

^4 (J)I thank ^[c]my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, ⁵ that in everything you were ^(K)enriched in Him, in all ^(L)speech and ^(M)all knowledge, ⁶ just as ^(N)the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed ^[d]in you, ⁷ so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you eagerly ^(O)await the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, ^8 (P)who will also ^[e]confirm you to the end, blameless on ^(Q)the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ^9 (R)God is faithful, through whom you were ^(S)called into ^(T)fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

¹⁰ Now ^(U)I urge you, ^(V)brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all ^[f]agree and that there be no ^[g](W)divisions among you, but that you be ^[h]made complete in ^(X)the same mind and in the same judgment. ¹¹ For I have been informed concerning you, my brothers and sisters, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you. ¹² Now I mean this, that ^(Y)each one of you is saying, “I am ^[i]with Paul,” ^[j]or “I am ^[k]with ^(Z)Apollos,” ^[l]or “I am ^[m]with ^[n](AA)Cephas,” ^[o]or “I am ^[p]with Christ.” ^13 [q]Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you ^(AB)baptized ^[r]in the name of Paul? ¹⁴ I am thankful that I ^(AC)baptized none of you except ^(AD)Crispus and ^(AE)Gaius, ¹⁵ so that no one would say you were baptized ^[s]in my name! ¹⁶ But I did baptize the ^(AF)household of Stephanas also; beyond that, I do not know if I baptized anyone else. ^17 (AG)For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, ^(AH)not with ^[t]cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made of no effect.

The Wisdom of God

¹⁸ For the word of the cross is ^(AI)foolishness to ^(AJ)those who ^[u]are perishing, but to us who ^[v]are being saved it is ^(AK)the power of God. ¹⁹ For it is written:

^20 (AM)Where is the wise person? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of ^(AN)this age? Has God not ^(AO)made foolish the wisdom of ^(AP)the world? ²¹ For since in the wisdom of God ^(AQ)the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, ^(AR)God ^[w]was pleased through the ^(AS)foolishness of the ^[x]message preached to ^(AT)save those who believe. ²² For indeed ^(AU)Jews ask for ^[y]signs and Greeks search for wisdom; ²³ but we preach ^[z](AV)Christ crucified, ^(AW)to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles ^(AX)foolishness, ²⁴ but to those who are ^(AY)the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ ^(AZ)the power of God and ^(BA)the wisdom of God. ²⁵ For the ^(BB)foolishness of God is wiser than mankind, and ^(BC)the weakness of God is stronger than mankind.

²⁶ For ^[aa]consider your ^(BD)calling, brothers and sisters, that there were ^(BE)not many wise according to ^[ab]the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; ²⁷ but ^(BF)God has chosen the foolish things of ^(BG)the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of ^(BH)the world to shame the things which are strong, ²⁸ and the ^[ac]insignificant things of ^(BI)the world and the despised God has chosen, ^(BJ)the things that are not, so that He may ^(BK)nullify the things that are, ²⁹ so that ^(BL)no ^[ad]human may boast before God. ³⁰ But it is ^[ae]due to Him that you are in ^(BM)Christ Jesus, who became to us ^(BN)wisdom from God, ^[af]and ^(BO)righteousness and ^(BP)sanctification, and ^(BQ)redemption, ³¹ so that, just as it is written: “^(BR)Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Paul’s Reliance upon the Spirit

2 And when I came to you, brothers and sisters, I ^(BS)did not come as someone superior in ^[ag]speaking ability or ^[ah]wisdom, as I proclaimed to you ^(BT)the ^[ai]testimony of God. ² For I determined to know nothing among you except ^(BU)Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. ³ I also was with you in ^(BV)weakness and ^(BW)fear, and in great trembling, ⁴ and my ^[aj]message and my preaching were ^(BX)not in persuasive words of ^[ak]wisdom, but in demonstration of ^(BY)the Spirit and of power, ⁵ so that your faith would not ^[al]rest on the ^[am]wisdom of mankind, but on ^(BZ)the power of God.

⁶ Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are ^(CA)mature; a wisdom, however, not of ^(CB)this age nor of the rulers of ^(CC)this age, who are ^(CD)passing away; ⁷ but we speak God’s wisdom in a ^(CE)mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ^(CF)predestined before the ^(CG)ages to our glory; ⁸ the wisdom ^(CH)which none of the rulers of ^(CI)this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified ^(CJ)the Lord of glory; ⁹ but just as it is written:

^10 [an](CL)For to us God revealed them ^(CM)through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the ^(CN)depths of God. ¹¹ For who among people knows the thoughts of a person except the ^(CO)spirit of the person that is in him? So also the thoughts of God no one knows, except the Spirit of God. ¹² Now we ^(CP)have not received the spirit of ^(CQ)the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God. ¹³ We also speak these things, ^(CR)not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, ^[ao]combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

¹⁴ But ^[ap]a ^(CS)natural person ^(CT)does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are ^(CU)foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. ¹⁵ But the one who is ^(CV)spiritual discerns all things, yet he himself is ^[aq]discerned by no one. ¹⁶ For ^(CW)who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But ^(CX)we have the mind of Christ.

Foundations for Living

3 And I, brothers and sisters, could not speak to you as ^(CY)spiritual people, but only as ^(CZ)fleshly, as to ^(DA)infants in Christ. ² I gave you ^(DB)milk to drink, not solid food; for you ^(DC)were not yet able to consume it. But even now you are not yet able, ³ for you are still fleshly. For since there is ^(DD)jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking ^(DE)like ordinary people? ⁴ For when ^(DF)one person says, “I am ^[ar]with Paul,” and another, “I am ^[as]with Apollos,” are you not ordinary ^(DG)people?

⁵ What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? ^(DH)Servants through whom you believed, even ^(DI)as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. ^6 (DJ)I planted, ^(DK)Apollos watered, but ^(DL)God was causing the growth. ⁷ So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. ⁸ Now the one who plants and the one who waters are one; but each will ^(DM)receive his own ^[at]reward according to his own labor. ⁹ For we are God’s ^(DN)fellow workers; you are God’s ^[au](DO)field, God’s ^(DP)building.

¹⁰ According to ^(DQ)the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder ^(DR)I laid a foundation, and ^(DS)another is building on it. But each person must be careful how he builds on it. ¹¹ For no one can lay a ^(DT)foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. ¹² Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, ^13 (DU)each one’s work will become evident; for ^(DV)the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test ^[av]the quality of each one’s work. ¹⁴ If anyone’s work which he has built on it remains, he will ^(DW)receive a reward. ¹⁵ If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only ^(DX)so as through fire.

^16 (DY)Do you not know that ^(DZ)you are a ^[aw]temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? ¹⁷ If anyone destroys the ^[ax]temple of God, God will destroy ^[ay]that person; for the ^[az]temple of God is holy, ^[ba]and that is what you are.

^18 (EA)Take care that no one deceives himself. ^(EB)If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in ^(EC)this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. ¹⁹ For ^(ED)the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the sight of God. For it is written: “He is ^(EE)the one who catches the wise by their craftiness”; ²⁰ and again, “^(EF)The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are useless.” ²¹ So then, ^(EG)no one is to be boasting in people. For ^(EH)all things belong to you, ^22 (EI)whether Paul or Apollos or ^[bb]Cephas, or the world or ^(EJ)life or death, or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, ²³ and ^(EK)you belong to Christ, and ^(EL)Christ belongs to God.