Wisdom from Above

13 Who is wise and understanding among you? ^mBy his good conduct let him show his works ⁿin the meekness of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter ^ojealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. 15 This is not ^pthe wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, ^qdemonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. 17 But ^rthe wisdom from above is first pure, then ^speaceable, gentle, open to reason, ^tfull of mercy and good fruits, ^uimpartial and ^vsincere. 18 And ^wa harvest of righteousness ^xis sown in peace by those who make peace.

Taming the Tongue

1 ^cNot many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.

Divisions in the Church

10 I appeal to you, brothers,¹ by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no ^pdivisions among you, but that you be united ^qin the same mind and the same judgment. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is ^rquarreling among you, my brothers. 12 What I mean is that ^seach one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow ^tApollos,” or “I follow ^uCephas,” or “I follow Christ.” 13 ^vIs Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you ^wbaptized in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except ^xCrispus and ^yGaius, 15 so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. 16 (I did baptize also ^zthe household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and ^anot with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

Christ the Wisdom and Power of God

18 For the word of the cross is ^bfolly to ^cthose who are perishing, but to us ^dwho are being saved it is ^ethe power of God. 19 For it is written,

20 ^gWhere is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? ^hHas not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach² to save those who believe. 22 For ⁱJews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ ^jcrucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ ^kthe power of God and ^lthe wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

26 For consider your calling, brothers: ^mnot many of you were wise according to worldly standards,³ not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But ⁿGod chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; ^oGod chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even ^pthings that are not, to ^qbring to nothing things that are, 29 so ^rthat no human being⁴ might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him⁵ you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us ^swisdom from God, ^trighteousness and ^usanctification and ^vredemption, 31 so that, as it is written, ^w“Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Proclaiming Christ Crucified

1 And I, when I came to you, brothers,^{6 x}did not come proclaiming to you ^ythe testimony⁷ of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except ^zJesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And ^aI was with you ^bin weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of ^cthe Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men⁸ but ^din the power of God.