1 Corinthians 9-11

New Century Version

Paul Is like the Other Apostles

9 I am a free man. I am an apostle. I have seen Jesus our Lord. You people are all an example of my work in the Lord. ² If others do not accept me as an apostle, surely you do, because you are proof that I am an apostle in the Lord.

³ This is the answer I give people who want to judge me: ⁴ Do we not have the right to eat and drink? ⁵ Do we not have the right to bring a believing wife with us when we travel as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Peter? ⁶ Are Barnabas and I the only ones who must work to earn our living? ⁷ No soldier ever serves in the army and pays his own salary. No one ever plants a vineyard without eating some of the grapes. No person takes care of a flock without drinking some of the milk.

⁸ I do not say this by human authority; God’s law also says the same thing. ⁹ It is written in the law of Moses: “When an ox is working in the grain, do not cover its mouth to keep it from eating.”^[a] When God said this, was he thinking only about oxen? No. ¹⁰ He was really talking about us. Yes, that Scripture was written for us, because it goes on to say: “The one who plows and the one who works in the grain should hope to get some of the grain for their work.” ¹¹ Since we planted spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we should harvest material things? ¹² If others have the right to get something from you, surely we have this right, too. But we do not use it. No, we put up with everything ourselves so that we will not keep anyone from believing the Good News of Christ. ¹³ Surely you know that those who work at the Temple get their food from the Temple, and those who serve at the altar get part of what is offered at the altar. ¹⁴ In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who tell the Good News should get their living from this work.

¹⁵ But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this now to get anything from you. I would rather die than to have my reason for bragging taken away. ¹⁶ Telling the Good News does not give me any reason for bragging. Telling the Good News is my duty—something I must do. And how terrible it will be for me if I do not tell the Good News. ¹⁷ If I preach because it is my own choice, I have a reward. But if I preach and it is not my choice to do so, I am only doing the duty that was given to me. ¹⁸ So what reward do I get? This is my reward: that when I tell the Good News I can offer it freely. I do not use my full rights in my work of preaching the Good News.

¹⁹ I am free and belong to no one. But I make myself a slave to all people to win as many as I can. ²⁰ To the Jews I became like a Jew to win the Jews. I myself am not ruled by the law. But to those who are ruled by the law I became like a person who is ruled by the law. I did this to win those who are ruled by the law. ²¹ To those who are without the law I became like a person who is without the law. I did this to win those people who are without the law. (But really, I am not without God’s law—I am ruled by Christ’s law.) ²² To those who are weak, I became weak so I could win the weak. I have become all things to all people so I could save some of them in any way possible. ²³ I do all this because of the Good News and so I can share in its blessings.

²⁴ You know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize. So run to win! ²⁵ All those who compete in the games use self-control so they can win a crown. That crown is an earthly thing that lasts only a short time, but our crown will never be destroyed. ²⁶ So I do not run without a goal. I fight like a boxer who is hitting something—not just the air. ²⁷ I treat my body hard and make it my slave so that I myself will not be disqualified after I have preached to others.

Warnings from Israel’s Past

10 Brothers and sisters, I want you to know what happened to our ancestors who followed Moses. They were all under the cloud and all went through the sea. ² They were all baptized as followers of Moses in the cloud and in the sea. ³ They all ate the same spiritual food, ⁴ and all drank the same spiritual drink. They drank from that spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. ⁵ But God was not pleased with most of them, so they died in the desert.

⁶ And these things happened as examples for us, to stop us from wanting evil things as those people did. ⁷ Do not worship idols, as some of them did. Just as it is written in the Scriptures: “They sat down to eat and drink, and then they got up and sinned sexually.”^{[b] 8} We must not take part in sexual sins, as some of them did. In one day twenty-three thousand of them died because of their sins. ⁹ We must not test Christ as some of them did; they were killed by snakes. ¹⁰ Do not complain as some of them did; they were killed by the angel that destroys.

¹¹ The things that happened to those people are examples. They were written down to teach us, because we live in a time when all these things of the past have reached their goal. ¹² If you think you are strong, you should be careful not to fall. ¹³ The only temptation that has come to you is that which everyone has. But you can trust God, who will not permit you to be tempted more than you can stand. But when you are tempted, he will also give you a way to escape so that you will be able to stand it.

¹⁴ So, my dear friends, run away from the worship of idols. ¹⁵ I am speaking to you as to reasonable people; judge for yourselves what I say. ¹⁶ We give thanks for the cup of blessing,^[c] which is a sharing in the blood of Christ. And the bread that we break is a sharing in the body of Christ. ¹⁷ Because there is one loaf of bread, we who are many are one body, because we all share that one loaf.

¹⁸ Think about the Israelites: Do not those who eat the sacrifices share in the altar? ¹⁹ I do not mean that the food sacrificed to an idol is important. I do not mean that an idol is anything at all. ²⁰ But I say that what is sacrificed to idols is offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to share anything with demons. ²¹ You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons also. You cannot share in the Lord’s table and the table of demons. ²² Are we trying to make the Lord jealous? We are not stronger than he is, are we?

How to Use Christian Freedom

²³ “We are allowed to do all things,” but not all things are good for us to do. “We are allowed to do all things,” but not all things help others grow stronger. ²⁴ Do not look out only for yourselves. Look out for the good of others also.

²⁵ Eat any meat that is sold in the meat market. Do not ask questions about it. ²⁶ You may eat it, “because the earth belongs to the Lord, and everything in it.”^[d]

²⁷ Those who are not believers may invite you to eat with them. If you want to go, eat anything that is put before you. Do not ask questions about it. ²⁸ But if anyone says to you, “That food was offered to idols,” do not eat it. Do not eat it because of that person who told you and because eating it might be thought to be wrong. ²⁹ I don’t mean you think it is wrong, but the other person might. But why, you ask, should my freedom be judged by someone else’s conscience? ³⁰ If I eat the meal with thankfulness, why am I criticized because of something for which I thank God?

³¹ The answer is, if you eat or drink, or if you do anything, do it all for the glory of God. ³² Never do anything that might hurt others—Jews, Greeks, or God’s church— ³³ just as I, also, try to please everybody in every way. I am not trying to do what is good for me but what is good for most people so they can be saved.

11 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.

Being Under Authority

² I praise you because you remember me in everything, and you follow closely the teachings just as I gave them to you. ³ But I want you to understand this: The head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is the man,^[e] and the head of Christ is God. ⁴ Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered brings shame to his head. ⁵ But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered brings shame to her head. She is the same as a woman who has her head shaved. ⁶ If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off. But since it is shameful for a woman to cut off her hair or to shave her head, she should cover her head. ⁷ But a man should not cover his head, because he is the likeness and glory of God. But woman is man’s glory. ⁸ Man did not come from woman, but woman came from man. ⁹ And man was not made for woman, but woman was made for man. ¹⁰ So that is why a woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

¹¹ But in the Lord women are not independent of men, and men are not independent of women. ¹² This is true because woman came from man, but also man is born from woman. But everything comes from God. ¹³ Decide this for yourselves: Is it right for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? ¹⁴ Even nature itself teaches you that wearing long hair is shameful for a man. ¹⁵ But long hair is a woman’s glory. Long hair is given to her as a covering. ¹⁶ Some people may still want to argue about this, but I would add that neither we nor the churches of God have any other practice.

The Lord’s Supper

¹⁷ In the things I tell you now I do not praise you, because when you come together you do more harm than good. ¹⁸ First, I hear that when you meet together as a church you are divided, and I believe some of this. ¹⁹ (It is necessary to have differences among you so that it may be clear which of you really have God’s approval.) ²⁰ When you come together, you are not really eating the Lord’s Supper.^{[f] 21} This is because when you eat, each person eats without waiting for the others. Some people do not get enough to eat, while others have too much to drink. ²² You can eat and drink in your own homes! You seem to think God’s church is not important, and you embarrass those who are poor. What should I tell you? Should I praise you? I do not praise you for doing this.

²³ The teaching I gave you is the same teaching I received from the Lord: On the night when the Lord Jesus was handed over to be killed, he took bread ²⁴ and gave thanks for it. Then he broke the bread and said, “This is my body; it is^[g] for you. Do this to remember me.” ²⁵ In the same way, after they ate, Jesus took the cup. He said, “This cup is the new agreement that is sealed with the blood of my death. When you drink this, do it to remember me.” ²⁶ Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup you are telling others about the Lord’s death until he comes.

²⁷ So a person who eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in a way that is not worthy of it will be guilty of sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord. ²⁸ Look into your own hearts before you eat the bread and drink the cup, ²⁹ because all who eat the bread and drink the cup without recognizing the body eat and drink judgment against themselves. ³⁰ That is why many in your group are sick and weak, and some of you have died. ³¹ But if we judged ourselves in the right way, God would not judge us. ³² But when the Lord judges us, he disciplines us so that we will not be destroyed along with the world.

³³ So my brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, wait for each other. ³⁴ Anyone who is too hungry should eat at home so that in meeting together you will not bring God’s judgment on yourselves. I will tell you what to do about the other things when I come.