The reference to boasting in the previous verse anticipates the quotation in verse 31, and the present verse may be understood as an example of what Paul means by “boasting in the Lord” in the next verse.

In Revised Standard Version the first He refers to God, but whom refers to Christ. This should be made clear in translation, if necessary, by using nouns in place of pronouns, or by some other equivalent change. Good News Bible uses “God” in the first instance, and the name “Christ” in the second.

Your is emphasized like “we” in verse 23.

The first part of the verse may be understood in two ways: (1) “It is only in Christ Jesus that you are related to God”; or (2) “the fact that you are Christians (in Christ) has its origins in God.” The difference is one of focus rather than meaning. The second alternative is slightly more probable. For a comment on the phrase in Christ Jesus, see 1 Cor. 1.2.

Whom God made our wisdom may be understood in such a way as to emphasize our. The meaning in this case may be restated: “Christ is (or, has) the only kind of wisdom we care anything about, and God has given us this kind of wisdom.” However, it is more likely that emphasis falls on wisdom, and that the meaning is “Christ has become for us the very personification of wisdom, God’s wisdom.” This meaning may be translated “Through (or, in) Christ, God gives us his own wisdom.” There is evidence that passages in the Hebrew Old Testament and the Deuterocanon, which personify wisdom, influenced Paul and other New Testament writers. Good News Bible uses “God” in the first sentence of this verse and again in the second sentence. Many languages will find this too repetitive, as it is clear who the agent of the action “has made” is. One can simply say “… and has made Christ….”

The relation between the four nouns wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption is not clear. The structure of the Greek sentence appears to separate wisdom from the others and to join righteousness and sanctification closely together. Commentators are generally agreed that these four nouns, which represent four actions by God, are not to be understood as a series of separate stages in the Christian life. In “glorifying” or “boasting” about Christ, Paul heaps up nouns to describe what God has done in Christ. It is possible to think of our wisdom as a general description of Christ, and the other nouns as indicating various aspects of his work. If so, Good News Bible is right to divide the sentence after wisdom.

The second half of this verse, which Good News Bible translates as a separate sentence, includes more abstract nouns like wisdom. Good News Bible translates these by verbs, since they indicate events.

Righteousness in this verse, like sanctification and redemption, is a noun that refers to something that is done by God through Christ. Good News Bible makes the meaning clear. In some languages it may be necessary to translate “God puts us right with himself.”

Sanctification, as Good News Bible shows, is related to a community: “we become God’s holy people.” The word does not mean individual saintliness. It refers to God’s claiming Christians and setting them apart, like Israel in Old Testament times, to be his special people. One could render this as “people who are dedicated to God” or “God’s special people.” See also the comments on the translation of sanctified in 1 Cor. 1.2.

Redemption sometimes suggests the payment of a ransom. But often, in both the Old and the New Testament, it simply refers to “freedom” or “liberation” from the power of evil. The great example of this was the liberation of Israel from slavery in Egypt at the time of the exodus. No payment was involved in that liberation. In certain languages redemption or “are set free” (Good News Bible) can be translated as “have received our freedom.” Bible en français courant translates “set free from sin.” In languages that do not use the passive, one may say, for example, “God has set us free from sin.”

In the second half of this verse many translators will need to identify God as the agent of all the events. This sentence may be restructured as follows: “God has also put us right with himself through Christ, and has made us like his people and set us free.”

An alternative translation model for this verse is:
• But God has caused our lives to be completely linked with Christ Jesus, and through Christ he gives us his own wisdom. God also puts us right with himself. Through Christ we become his special people, and he frees us from sin.

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 .

As in verse 14, any man may refer to either men or women. Good News Bible uses “your,” “you,” and “you yourself” to make this clear; but Paul is not addressing any individual.

The first part of this verse parallels the structure of verse 14. It expresses a contrast that Good News Bible rightly brings out by adding “But.” Translators should consider what resources are available in their own language to express (1) the contrast between verses 14 and 15a; (2) the wider contrast between what happens to the work and what happens to the builder himself; the qualifications that are introduced at the end of the sentence. In most translations that we consulted, either (1) or (2) is left unexpressed.

Is burned up, like “survives” in verse 14, is in the future tense in Greek, referring to the Day of Judgment.

He will suffer loss is too general a translation. Three other translations are possible: (1) he will be punished (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch); (2) he will lose his work (Good News Bible, New Jerusalem Bible), that is, it will be burnt up; (3) he will lose the reward for his work (Barrett, Bible en français courant, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, Translator’s New Testament). (1) is an unusual meaning of the Greek word, though Paul may be thinking of its use in the Greek of Pro 19.19. (2) adds nothing to what has been said already. (3) makes a good contrast with verse 14b and may be the best solution.

He himself will be saved emphasizes the contrast between the person himself and the work he has done. He will be like someone who narrowly escapes death by running through flames. Literally, he will not be condemned and destroyed by God at the last judgment, although his work on earth has been destroyed. In languages that do not normally use the passive one may say, for example, “he himself will not perish,” or “he himself will not suffer (or, receive) destruction.”

But only as through fire is too literal a translation. Good News Bible‘s “as if he had escaped through the fire” rightly fills out the meaning of the Greek. “As if,” though, suggests that Paul is not thinking specifically of the judgment fires. The rendering “like someone who has been pulled out of the fire” probably is a more general and accurate meaning.

An alternative translation model for this verse is:
• But if the fire burns up anyone’s work, then he will not receive an award. But he himself will escape destruction, like someone whom they pull out of the fire.

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 .

See Revised Standard Version for the division between verses 3 and 4. Good News Bible has restructured the translation by placing “in the name of our Lord Jesus” earlier in the sentence, for the sake of style, and for this reason has combined the two verses.

The text begins with an emphatic I. This probably contrasts with the emphatic “you” of verse 2. It may also contrast with the judgment of the whole community with which verse 4 is concerned. The meaning in the second case would be “As far as I am concerned, I have already reached a decision, but the whole congregation must confirm and apply this.”

The contrast absent in body … present in spirit recalls a similar passage in 4.18-19.

Good News Bible‘s “far” is implicit in the Greek text and can be included by the translator if deemed necessary.

Spirit does not refer to the Holy Spirit or to a spiritual entity or separate personality in Paul’s body, but refers to Paul’s mind or thoughts. In most languages it will be helpful to render I am present in spirit as “I am present with you in my thoughts.” Some languages, of course, have one word for both “heart” and “mind.” Such a word would be meaningful in this verse.

The phrase as if present may also be rendered as “as though I were present in Corinth with you” or “… I were there in Corinth with you.”

I have already pronounced judgment is literally “I have judged,” but the tense of the Greek verb suggests that it is a judgment that still stands.

In the name of the Lord Jesus: King James Version followed Greek manuscripts that have “our Lord Jesus Christ,” but “Christ” is almost certainly not part of the original text. The word “our” (Good News Bible) may not have been in the original text either, in which case the translation would be the Lord Jesus, as in Revised Standard Version and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch. New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, and Revised English Bible, however, agree with Good News Bible. The UBS Greek text omits “Christ” and puts “our” in square brackets, indicating that this word may not be part of the text. Our Lord Jesus certainly translates the correct Greek text at the end of this verse.

Done translates a different Greek word from the one used in verse 2, but the meaning is the same.

As in verse 1, “terrible” in Good News Bible is implied in the Greek text and may be added by translators if deemed necessary. Other ways to express “terrible” are “shocking” or “appalling.” In some languages the phrase “done such a thing” will be expressed as “broken this taboo.”

The clause and my spirit is present may be rendered as “I am with you in my heart.”

With the power of our Lord Jesus may be expressed as “with the authority of our Lord Jesus.”

It is possible to make the phrase with the power of our Lord Jesus relate only to my spirit is present, just as earlier in the sentence Paul speaks of having judged in the name of the Lord Jesus. However, it probably makes better sense to think of the assembled Corinthian Christians, Paul, and the power of Jesus all working together to condemn and punish the guilty man. Power here refers to Jesus’ “authority” rather than to some supernatural power that Paul and the Corinthian Christians will manipulate. A possible translation model for the final part of this verse is: “When you meet together, and I am meeting with you in my thoughts, through the authority of our Lord Jesus….”

There is probably no difference in meaning between in the name and with the power.

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 .

This is the only verse in this section in which Paul gives a direct instruction, expressed by a second person imperative.

Refuse is the verb that in 6.7 was translated “defrauded.” Here the meaning is to deprive the husband (or wife) of what in verse 3 was stated to be his (or her) right. Moffatt translates “Do not withhold sexual intercourse from one another.” One may also say “you should not abstain from sexual intercourse with your married partner.” In languages that require the use of euphemism here, one can express this phrase as “you should not abstain from coming together” “… not abstain from living and eating together,” or “Do not stop sleeping together.”

Except translates an unusual Greek phrase that seems to suggest that Paul is speaking tentatively or even grudgingly (see verse 6). Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “at most when you have agreed.” One may also say “Unless perhaps you agree to deny yourselves to each other like this.”

For a season (Good News Bible‘s “for a while”): a general expression is needed here. Jerusalem Bible‘s “for an agreed time” is too precise; New Jerusalem Bible has “for a limited time,” and similarly Barclay. The text states that the couple agree to abstain from intercourse for a while, but does not state that they agree on how long the time of abstinence should be. One could also say “for a short time.”

The rest of the verse consists of two clauses beginning with “in order that” in the Greek; literally “in order that you may devote yourselves to prayer and again be together, in order that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” As this translation shows, there is no “and” between the two “in order that” clauses, so it is difficult to link them both directly to the main verb “come together.” The construction that makes the best sense is also the one that is suggested by the order of the clauses: (1) “do not deny yourselves to one another, except … in order to devote yourselves to prayer”; (2) then “come together again so that Satan may not tempt you….” In translation it may be necessary to express (1) and (2) in separate sentences. It will be helpful in many languages to add the information “after that” or “after that time” after the word but; for example, “but after that, you should come together again….”

There are two more points that the translator should notice, even if he decides not to make them explicit in his translation. (1) The first “in order that” clause includes the instruction “come together again,” and this means “in order to devote yourselves to prayer and then come together again.” (2) Some translations, including Revised Standard Version and Good News Bible, understand the second “in order that” clause as equivalent to an imperative.

Devote yourselves includes the idea of having leisure for something, in this case, prayer. King James Version has “fasting and prayer,” but the first two words are almost certainly not part of the original text. The phrase devote yourselves may also be expressed as “give your time to.”

Then come together again is a euphemism for “resume normal marital relations,” as Good News Bible shows. Translators need to find a common language expression to render this phrase.

The name Satan may need a glossary note in some languages (see comment on 5.5).

The last few words, literally “because of your lack-of-self-control,” can be easily misunderstood if they are not translated dynamically and expanded to a certain extent. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “because the (sexual) drive in you is too strong,” and Bible en français courant says “otherwise you would risk no longer being able to control yourselves.” A more simple way to translate this is “because you cannot continue to abstain from sexual relations” or “because you cannot continue to abstain from sleeping together.”

An alternative translation model for this verse is:
• Do not abstain from sleeping together unless perhaps you agree to deny yourselves to each other like this for a short time in order to pray. But after that time you should continue to sleep together. In this way Satan will not be able to tempt you to sin because you cannot control your sexual drive.

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 .

Paul’s language here suggests that he is dealing with an actual case at Corinth. This impression is given more clearly here than in verse 36.

Firmly expresses the meaning of the Greek perfect tense of the verbal expression established in his heart, which refers to a state of being rather than to a single past event. The clause firmly established in his heart may be expressed as “has set his heart strongly.”

Being under no necessity uses the word that was translated “distress” in verse 26, but there is no suggestion in this verse of events in the “last days.” This phrase may also be rendered as “nobody is making him do it” or “without anything forcing (or, compelling) him.”

The clause having his desire under control may be rendered as “but if he is able to control his desires (or, will) completely….”

To keep her as his betrothed is literally “to go-on-keeping his own virgin,” certainly implying that she will stay unmarried and still a virgin.

He will do well translates a Greek text that requires expansion in many languages, including English. Well is the adverb that corresponds to the adjective “good” in 5.6, and “well” in 7.1 and 7.8. An expanded translation such as Good News Bible‘s “he does well not to marry the girl” will bring out the meaning clearly here.

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 .

If we consider Paul’s general theme in this chapter, the first part of this verse implies “It is not the fact I am preaching the gospel that in itself gives me the reason for boasting.” The rest of the verse then explains that to preach the gospel is an obligation, not a matter of free choice.

The first For may be expanded to “The truth is” or “Truly.”

For ground of boasting see comments on verse 15.

The clause For necessity is laid upon me may be rendered as “God has commanded me to do so.”

Is laid refers by implication to the action of God in calling Paul to be an apostle (see 1.1).

Woe to me is more than an interjection expressing sorrow; it refers implicitly to future judgment. In that case one can translate this as “How terrible it will be for me.” Paul does not use this expression elsewhere, but the translator may compare, for example, Matt 23.13-23; Luke 6.24-26; and Rev 18.10-19.

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 .