1 Corinthians 8

1 Corinthians 8:2

23 tn Or “Messiah”; Grk “preach Christ [Messiah] crucified,” giving the content of the message.

1 Corinthians 8:4

24 tn Grk “than men.”

25 tn Grk “than men.”

1 Corinthians 8:5

26 tn Grk “Think about your calling.” “Calling” in Paul’s writings usually refers to God’s work of drawing people to faith in Christ. The following verses show that “calling” here stands by metonymy for their circumstances when they became Christians, leading to the translation “the circumstances of your call.”

27 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

28 tn Grk “according to the flesh.”

29 tn The Greek word ευγενής (eugenh") refers to the status of being born into nobility, wealth, or power with an emphasis on the privileges and benefits that come with that position.

1 Corinthians 8:7

30 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

1 Corinthians 8:9

31 tn Grk “of him you are in Christ Jesus.”

1 Corinthians 8:10

32 sn A quotation from Jeremiah 9:24. The themes of Jer 9 have influenced Paul’s presentation in vv. 26-31. Jeremiah calls upon the wise, the strong, and the wealthy not to trust in their resources but in their knowledge of the true God - and so to boast in the Lord. Paul addresses the same three areas of human pride.

1 Corinthians 8:12

1 tn Grk “and I, when I came.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, κἀγώ (kagw) has not been translated here.

2 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

3 tc ‡ A few important mss (Ì46vid א* A C pc as well as some versions and fathers) read μυστήριον (musthrion, “mystery”) instead of μαρτύριον (marturion, “testimony”). But the latter has wider ms support (א2 B D F G Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï and some versions), though not quite as impressive. μαρτύριον may have been changed by scribes in anticipation of Paul’s words in 2:7, or conversely, μυστήριον may have been changed to conform to 1:6. Transcriptionally, since “the mystery of God/Christ” is a well-worn expression in the corpus Paulinum (1 Corinthians 2:7; 4:1; Ephesians 3:4; Colossians 2:2; 4:3), while “testimony of Christ” occurs in Paul only once (1 Corinthians 1:6, though “testimony of the Lord” appears in 2 Timothy 1:8), and “testimony of God” never, it is likely that scribes changed the text to the more usual expression. A decision is difficult in this instance, but a slight preference should be given to μαρτύριον.

1 Corinthians 8:13

4 tn Grk “to know nothing.”