The Greek text says literally, “Paul called apostle of Christ Jesus, through the will of God, and Sosthenes the brother.” The phrase “called apostle” does not mean that Paul was merely given the name “apostle” as Jesus gave the name “Peter” to Cephas. “Called apostle,” as many translations show, means “called to do the work of an apostle” or “called to be a messenger of Jesus Christ.” “Apostle” is related to a Greek verb meaning “send” and often means “someone sent as a messenger.” Jesus used it this way. Paul is called to follow Jesus, and he is also sent out as one of his messengers (compare Mark 3.14). Most English translations, like Good News Bible, keep the word “apostle” and explain it in a glossary or word list. Phillips (Phillips) translates it as “messenger,” but that term applies to anyone who brings the message, and not everyone who preached the Christian message was an “apostle.” Sosthenes, for example does not have this title. In certain languages apostle will be rendered as “chief messenger.”
The words by the will of God probably refer both to Paul’s calling and to his appointment as an apostle. Christ, though, was the one who appointed him directly. The work of God and that of Christ are closely connected, both here and in verse 2. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch combines the word “called” with the phrase “by the will of God” and translates this clause simply as “Paul, whom God called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ.” This clause may also be expressed as “Paul, whom God called to serve as (or, do the work of) a chief messenger of Jesus Christ….”
Called refers to one particular event in the past, so Good News Bible translates it as “was called,” not “has been called.” However, this past event is mentioned because it had consequences at the time when Paul wrote this letter. It is because Paul was once called, that he now has the authority of an apostle. Paul will have much more to say about this later (especially 1.10; 3.5; 4.1).
Translators in languages that seldom use or do not have a passive form of the verb may prefer to render the clause called by the will of God as “whom God decided to call….” Some languages can translate this phrase in an idiomatic way by saying “whom God set his heart to call.”
Brother in this verse, as often in the New Testament, refers to a male, but elsewhere in 1 Corinthians the word for “brothers” includes women too (see, for example, 1.10, where Good News Bible translates “my friends,” and New Revised Standard Version has “brothers and sisters”). Jews sometimes called one another “brothers” even when they were not of the same family (for example, 2 Maccabees 1.1). And early Christians often called one another “brother” even when they were of different nationality or race. However, the main meaning of brother in this verse is “fellow Christian.” It should be translated this way in languages where the word “brother” refers only to an actual family member. In certain languages, though, it can be translated in an idiomatic way as “elder,” or “younger,” or “elders and youngers” when it is plural. One may thus translate this phrase as “my fellow Christian, Sosthenes.”
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, 2nd edition. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1985/1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .