1 Corinthians 3

Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition

3 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal. As unto little ones in Christ.

²I gave you milk to drink, not meat; for you were not able as yet. But neither indeed are you now able; for you are yet carnal.

³For, whereas there is among you envying and contention, are you not carnal, and walk according to man?

⁴For while one saith, I indeed am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollo; are you not men? What then is Apollo, and what is Paul?

⁵The ministers of him whom you have believed; and to every one as the Lord hath given.

⁶I have planted, Apollo watered, but God gave the increase.

⁷Therefore, neither he that planteth is any thing, nor he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.

⁸Now he that planteth, and he that watereth, are one. And every man shall receive his own reward, according to his own labour.

⁹For we are God's coadjutors: you are God's husbandry; you are God's building.

¹⁰According to the grace of God that is given to me, as a wise architect, I have laid the foundation; and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.

¹¹For other foundation no man can lay, but that which is laid; which is Christ Jesus.

¹²Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble:

¹³Every man's work shall be manifest; for the day of the Lord shall declare it, because it shall be revealed in fire; and the fire shall try every man's work, of what sort it is.

¹⁴If any man's work abide, which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.

¹⁵If any man's work burn, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire.

¹⁶Know you not, that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

¹⁷But if any man violate the temple of God, him shall God destroy. For the temple of God is holy, which you are.

¹⁸Let no man deceive himself: if any man among you seem to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written: I will catch the wise in their own craftiness.

²⁰And again: The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.

²¹Let no man therefore glory in men.

²²For all things are yours, whether it be Paul, or Apollo, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; for all are yours;

²³And you are Christ's; and Christ is God's.

1 Corinthians 3

New International Version

The Church and Its Leaders

3 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit^(A) but as people who are still worldly^(B)—mere infants^(C) in Christ. ²I gave you milk, not solid food,^(D) for you were not yet ready for it.^(E) Indeed, you are still not ready. ³You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling^(F) among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? ⁴For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,”^(G) are you not mere human beings?

⁵What, after all, is Apollos?^(H) And what is Paul? Only servants,^(I) through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. ⁶I planted the seed,^(J) Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. ⁷So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. ⁸The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor.^(K) ⁹For we are co-workers in God’s service;^(L) you are God’s field,^(M) God’s building.^(N)

¹⁰By the grace God has given me,^(O) I laid a foundation^(P) as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. ¹¹For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.^(Q) ¹²If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, ¹³their work will be shown for what it is,^(R) because the Day^(S) will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work.^(T) ¹⁴If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward.^(U) ¹⁵If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.^(V)

¹⁶Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple^(W) and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?^(X) ¹⁷If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple.

¹⁸Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise^(Y) by the standards of this age,^(Z) you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. ¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness^(AA) in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”^[a];^(AB) ²⁰and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”^[b]^(AC) ²¹So then, no more boasting about human leaders!^(AD) All things are yours,^(AE) ²²whether Paul or Apollos^(AF) or Cephas^[c]^(AG) or the world or life or death or the present or the future^(AH)—all are yours, ²³and you are of Christ,^(AI) and Christ is of God.