New Testament in a Year

²⁹ If the dead are never raised, then what will people do who are baptized for those who have died? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them?

³⁰ And what about us? Why do we put ourselves in danger every hour? ³¹ I die every day. That is true, brothers, just as it is true that I brag about you in Christ Jesus our Lord. ³² If I fought wild animals in Ephesus only for human reasons, I have gained nothing. If the dead are not raised, then, “Let us eat and drink, because tomorrow we will die.”^[a]

³³ Do not be fooled: “Bad friends will ruin good habits.” ³⁴ Come back to your right way of thinking and stop sinning. I say this to shame you—some of you do not know God.

What Kind of Body Will We Have?

³⁵ But someone may ask, “How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have?” ³⁶ Those are stupid questions. When you plant something, it must die in the ground before it can live and grow. ³⁷ And when you plant it, what you plant does not have the same “body” that it will have later. What you plant is only a seed, maybe wheat or something else. ³⁸ But God gives it a body that he has planned for it. And God gives each kind of seed its own body. ³⁹ All things made of flesh are not the same kinds of flesh: People have one kind of flesh, animals have another kind, birds have another, and fish have another. ⁴⁰ Also there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. But the beauty of the heavenly bodies is one kind. The beauty of the earthly bodies is another kind. ⁴¹ The sun has one kind of beauty. The moon has another beauty, and the stars have another. And each star is different in its beauty.

⁴² It is the same with the dead who are raised to life. The body that is “planted” will ruin and decay. But that body is raised to a life that cannot be destroyed. ⁴³ When the body is “planted,” it is without honor. But it is raised in glory. When the body is “planted,” it is weak. But when it is raised, it has power. ⁴⁴ The body that is “planted” is a physical body. When it is raised, it is a spiritual body.

There is a physical body. And there is also a spiritual body. ⁴⁵ It is written in the Scriptures: “The first man became a living person.”^[b] But the last Adam became a spirit that gives life. ⁴⁶ The spiritual man did not come first. It was the physical man who came first; then came the spiritual. ⁴⁷ The first man came from the dust of the earth. The second man came from heaven. ⁴⁸ People belong to the earth. They are like the first man of earth. But those people who belong to heaven are like the man of heaven. ⁴⁹ We were made like the man of earth. So we will^[c] also be made like the man of heaven.

⁵⁰ I tell you this, brothers: Flesh and blood cannot have a part in the kingdom of God. A thing that will ruin cannot have a part in something that never ruins. ⁵¹ But listen, I tell you this secret: We will not all die, but we will all be changed. ⁵² It will only take a second. We will be changed as quickly as an eye blinks. This will happen when the last trumpet sounds. The trumpet will sound and those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we will all be changed. ⁵³ This body that will ruin must clothe itself with something that will never ruin. And this body that dies must clothe itself with something that will never die. ⁵⁴ So this body that ruins will clothe itself with that which never ruins. And this body that dies will clothe itself with that which never dies. When this happens, then this Scripture will be made true:

⁵⁶ Death’s power to hurt is sin. The power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷ But we thank God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵⁸ So my dear brothers, stand strong. Do not let anything move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord. You know that your work in the Lord is never wasted.