1:28a

We: Paul was referring to himself and other people who preached the message about Christ.

proclaim Him: The pronoun Him refers back to Christ in 1:27. In some languages it is not possible to say that a person “proclaims a person.” What Paul meant was that he proclaimed the message about Christ.

1:28b

admonishing…everyone: This means “warning everyone, instructing them not to do something, because it is wrong.”

teaching everyone: When Paul “admonished” people, he was warning them about what they should not do. When he taught them, he was telling them what they should do as Christians.

everyone: In the Greek text Paul emphasized the word everyone. He used it three times: “we warn everyone and we teach everyone… so that we may present everyone complete in Christ.” Paul was probably emphasizing that he did not distinguish between one Christian and another. Every Christian needs to be warned and taught so that they all will become perfect in Christ.

with all wisdom: The Greek says, “in all wisdom.” This type of grammatical construction in Greek usually refers to the manner in which something is done, so most English versions and commentators believe that Paul was saying here that he taught very wisely. You could also translate this:

teaching as wisely as we(excl.) can
-or-
teaching using all the wisdom God has given us(excl.)

1:28c

so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ: Paul wanted this to happen as a result of his teaching—that everyone he told about Christ would believe, grow as a Christian, and so become perfect in Christ.

present: This is the same verb that Paul used in 1:22c. See the note there.

perfect: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as perfect can also mean “complete, mature, grown-up,” and many English translations use that meaning (Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word, NET Bible, New Century Version, Revised English Bible). Here Paul meant that he wanted everyone to whom he preached to become a mature (strong) believer in Christ.

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