1 Corinthians 15 | Liberation and Inclusion Translation

¹ Family,^a I’m going to help you understand the triumphant message^b that I announced to you that you accepted, on which you have been established, ² and through which you are liberated,^c if you hold onto the triumphant message that I announced to you—unless, that is, if you came to trust pointlessly. ³ You see, among the first things I passed along to you that I also had accepted was that Christ died for the sake of our deviations^d based on the scriptures, ⁴ that he was buried and was raised up on the third day based on the scriptures, ⁵ and that he was seen by Cephas,^e then the rest of the Twelve. ⁶ After that, he was seen by over 500 members of the Family at once, the majority of whom are still surviving now, though some have fallen asleep.^f ⁷ After that, he was seen by Jacob,^g then by all those who were commissioned.^h ⁸ Last of all, like by someone whose development was aborted,ⁱ he was also seen by me. ⁹ That’s because I am the least of those who have been commissioned; I’m not fit to be called a commissioned one because I persecuted God’s Called Community.^j ¹⁰ By God’s generosity,^k I am what I am, and God’s generosity for me has not turned out to be futile, but rather, I have heavily labored, surpassing all of them—not I, but rather, God’s generosity that’s with me. ¹¹ Therefore, whether I do it or they do it, this is what we announce, and this is what you came to trust.^l

¹² If it is announced that Christ has been raised from among the dead, how is it that some among you say that there is no reawakening^m of the dead? ¹³ If there is no reawakening of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. ¹⁴ If Christ has not been raised, that means your announcement is futile, and your trust is futile, ¹⁵ and we are also found to be false witnesses about God because we testified against God that God raised Christ who was not raised—if, indeed, the dead are not raised. ¹⁶ You see, if the dead are not raised, then Christ is not raised. ¹⁷ If Christ is not raised, your trust is useless, and you are still in your deviations. ¹⁸ That also means those connected with Christ who have fallen asleep are lost. ¹⁹ If we who have placed our hope in Christ do so only regarding this life, we are the most in need of compassionⁿ of all people.

²⁰ However, Christ has already been raised from among the dead as the first harvest of those who have fallen asleep. ²¹ You see, since death came through a human, reawakening of the dead also came through a human. ²² Just as everyone dies with Adam,^o in the same way everyone will be made alive with Christ. ²³ Each person will experience it in their own order: Christ as the first harvest, then those who belong to Christ^p at his arrival, ²⁴ then the end will come when he hands over the Reign^q to God, the Father, when he renders obsolete^r all rule and authority and power. ²⁵ You see, it’s necessary for him to reign until God places all those who are hostile under his feet. ²⁶ The last hostile one to be made obsolete is Death. ²⁷ You see, “he has arranged everything under his feet.”^s When it says “everything has been arranged under,” it’s clear that it’s everything except the one who arranged everything under him. ²⁸ When everything is arranged under him, then even the son himself will be arranged under the one who arranged everything under him so that God would be everything in everything.

²⁹ Because of that, what will those who are immersed for the sake of the dead do? If the dead are not raised at all, what’s the point of them being immersed for their sake? ³⁰ And why are we in danger all the time? ³¹ Every single day, I’m about to die! It’s as certain as me bragging about you whom I have through Christ Jesus our Lord. ³² If things are based on human perspective,^t when I fought with wild animals in Ephesus, what benefit was it to me? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink since tomorrow we die.”^u ³³ Don’t be misled; “Cruel companionship corrupts compassionate character.”^v ³⁴ Sober up according to what’s right, and don’t deviate,^w because some have no understanding^x of God. I say this for the sake of your respectability.^y

³⁵ Nevertheless, someone will say, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” ³⁶ How mindless! What you plant is not made to live unless it dies. ³⁷ And what you plant is not the body that it will become but a bare seed, whether wheat, for example, or something else. ³⁸ God gives it a body just how God intended, its own body to each one of the seeds. ³⁹ Not all bodies are composed of the same thing, but while humans have one kind, land animals have another kind of body, and birds have another, and fish have another. ⁴⁰ There are bodies for the heavens and bodies for the land, but while the ones for the heavens have their own praiseworthiness,^z the ones for the land have a different praiseworthiness. ⁴¹ The praiseworthiness of the sun is one kind, and the praiseworthiness of the moon is another kind, and the praiseworthiness of the stars is different still because one star is distinct in its praiseworthiness from another star.

⁴² The reawakening of the dead also works the same way. It’s planted in perishability and raised in imperishability. ⁴³ It’s planted in disfavor and raised in praiseworthiness. ⁴⁴ A body animated by a person’s own life-force^aa is planted, and a body animated by the Life-breath is raised. If a body is animated by a person’s own life-force, it is also animated by the Life-breath. ⁴⁵ In the same way, both as it was written, “The first human, Adam, became a life-force,”^bb and the last Adam became a life-giving breath. ⁴⁶ Nevertheless, the Life-breath-animated one was not first, but the life-force-animated one was, and after that the Life-breath-animated one. ⁴⁷ The first human is earthen,^cc from the land; the second human is from the heavens. ⁴⁸ As the earthen one is, so are the earthen ones, and as the heavenly one is, so are the heavenly ones. ⁴⁹ So, just as we have borne^dd the image of the earthen one, we will also bear the image of the heavenly one.

⁵⁰ Family, this is what I’m saying: Flesh and blood cannot inherit God’s Reign, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. ⁵¹ Look, I’ll tell you a secret: We won’t all fall asleep, but we will all be transformed ⁵² in a moment, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet. You see, the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be transformed. ⁵³ It’s necessary for this perishable body to clothe itself in what is imperishable, and this body that is subject to Death^ee to clothe itself with what is undying.^ff ⁵⁴ When this perishable body clothes itself in what is imperishable and this body that is subject to Death clothes itself in what is undying, then the saying that has been written will come to pass: “Death has been swallowed up in triumph.”^gg

⁵⁵ Death, where is your triumph?^hh Death, “where is your goad?”ⁱⁱ ⁵⁶ Death’s goad^jj is deviation, and deviation’s power is human norms.^kk ⁵⁷ Thanks be to God who gives us triumph through our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁵⁸ So then, my beloved Family, become planted in place, immovable,^ll always surpassing in God’s work, and knowing that with the Lord, your heavy labor is not futile.^mm

Footnotes

a The word adelphos, literally means ‘brother’ or ‘sibling.’ It was also frequently used to refer to ‘cousin’ or ‘relative,’ and even for members of the same ideological or ethnic group. With Jesus’ insistence on a radically inclusive understanding of God’s instruction, it is always pushing further than what already seems to be the most wide-sweeping view people hold. In the New Testament letters, it comes to be used of anyone who has joined the Christ community, regardless of gender.
b Traditionally, ‘gospel’ or ‘good news.’ The word ‘gospel’ comes from the Anglo-Saxon term god-spell, which means ‘good story.’ The Greek euangelion literally means ‘good message’ and was used specifically of a message announced publicly, which fits the use of the word ‘news.’ The historical context comes from when rulers and military leaders returned to a city after victory in battle, and a herald would be sent ahead to announce the victory and the ruler’s impending arrival. The writers of the Bible took this word and applied it to Jesus’ victory of a different kind. The use of “triumphant message” here is intended to communicate the full meaning of the word in context and not the narrow dictionary definition.
c Traditionally, ‘salvation.’ This word can be translated a number of ways, with all of them about taking action to create or protect wellbeing. Options include ‘liberation,’ ‘restoration,’ ‘healing,’ ‘protection,’ ‘rescue,’ and others. The New Testament’s thematic focus is on restoring the people to their calling to represent God and live with love and justice, bringing them back to those things from where they’ve wandered in other directions, liberating them from the powers of the world and death.
d The word in Greek here is hamartia, traditionally translated ‘sin.’ The actual meaning is an archery term for missing the target; it’s a metaphor. It evokes an image of veering off course, ending up at an unintended location. Jesus used it regarding many situations, including harmful behavior, disregarding responsibilities as a people or individual called to a specific purpose, and even having chronic illness or debilitating injuries or cultural identities that prohibit one from full participation in temple worship according to the Torah, which is not implied to be wrongdoing but simply not aligned with Torah. Paul and others continued its use, usually with an emphasis on harmful behavior toward others, whether oppressive, exploitative, violent, or other patterns of community behavior contrary to the way of love traced out by the Hebrew Scriptures and lived out by Jesus.
e Cephas is from the Aramaic version of ‘Peter.’ They both are from the Aramaic and Greek words for ‘stone’ or ‘rock.’ See Matthew 16:18.
f The phrase “fall asleep” was a common euphemism for dying, similar to how Americans refer to someone dying as “passing away” to soften it.
g Traditionally: ‘James.’ The Greek is Iakob, which is the same as it uses for Jacob, son of Isaac and Jacob grandfather of Jesus. Jacob is the English name as it came through German, and James is the English name as it came through French. That way, it turned into two names in English, but it started as the same name in Hebrew and Greek.
h Traditionally, ‘apostles.’ The word means ‘someone who is sent to carry out a purpose’ and while it became used in a particular way in the church, it was not an inherently religious word in the Greek language.
i The Greek word ektromati is a hapax legomenon in the New Testament, meaning it occurs only once in the biblical text. It is derived from ek, meaning “out of” or “from,” and troma, meaning “wound” or “trauma.” In Greek medical texts, ektroma typically refers to a miscarriage, an aborted fetus, or a stillborn child. Some philosophical and metaphorical writings also use it to describe something deformed, incomplete, or prematurely ended. Traditional translations render it as “one untimely born” or “one abnormally born,” emphasizing Paul’s perceived irregularity in his apostleship. However, ektroma can also imply a life or potential that was interrupted or cut short. By translating it as “someone whose development was aborted,” it preserves the metaphor’s implications of an incomplete or disrupted process, reflecting Paul’s self-perception as an apostle who came to his calling under unusual and abrupt circumstances.
j Traditionally, ‘church’ or ‘assembly,’ the word ekklesia is about a community of people called from within a larger society to respond to the needs of that society, such as a neighborhood association.
k Traditionally, ‘grace’.
l Or literally, ‘this is how we announce it, and this is how you came to trust it,’ referring to the content of the message that is announced and trusted.
m Traditionally, ‘resurrection.’ The word literally means to ‘get up again’ or ‘stand again’ or even simply ‘stand up.’ It was commonly paired with ‘fall asleep’ as a euphemism for ‘to die’ and ‘standing again’ referred to coming back to life. However, the word could also literally mean ‘stand up’ from a sitting or lying position or to confront an oppressor or to claim a role, such as prophet.
n Traditionally translated as “to be pitied,” the Greek word eleeinós carries a broader meaning that more directly conveys “being in need of compassion.” While “pity” in English can suggest condescension or looking down on someone, eleeinós is connected to eleemon (compassionate, merciful) and eleos (compassion, kindness). The root of these words is associated with olive oil, which was used medicinally in the ancient world to soothe and care for the sick. Rather than merely being an object of others’ pity, eleeinós describes someone in a state of need, requiring compassionate care or action.
o Reference to the story in Genesis 3.
p See John 6 and John 17 for discussion about those whom the Father has given to Christ.
q Traditionally, ‘kingdom,’ but “Reign” emphasizes God’s ways filling and transforming creation, rather than defining a set place or “kingdom.” The Greek term basileia points to God’s influence, bringing about peace, justice, and restoration across lives and systems. This term highlights an active, ongoing impact that begins now and will be fully realized in the future through Jesus, focusing on transformation rather than territory.
r The Greek verb katargethesetai comes from katargeo, meaning “to make ineffective, render inoperative, abolish, or nullify.” Many translations render it as “will cease” or “will pass away,” but “will be rendered obsolete” more precisely conveys the sense of something losing its function or relevance rather than simply disappearing. Compare with 1 Corinthians 13:8–11.
s Reference to Psalm 8:6.
t The phrase ei kata anthropon is often translated as “if I fought with wild beasts in Ephesus in a merely human way” or “from human motives.” However, the Greek construction kata anthropon can broadly mean “according to human standards,” “from a human perspective,” or “based on human reasoning.” This phrase appears elsewhere in Paul’s writings (e.g., Galatians 1:11, Romans 3:5) where it refers to human ways of thinking rather than divine or spiritual truth.
u Reference to Isaiah 22:13 and 56:12.
v The quotation, “Cruel companionship corrupts compassionate character,” is a reference to a common saying in the ancient world. The phrase appears in Greek literature, most notably in the works of the playwright Menander (4th century BCE), who wrote, phaula homilemata phtheirousin ethe chresta (traditionally translated as “Bad company corrupts good character”). This proverbial wisdom was widely recognized and aligns with similar moral teachings found in both Greco-Roman philosophy and Jewish wisdom literature (e.g., Proverbs 13:20).
w The word in Greek here is hamartano, traditionally translated ‘sin.’ The actual meaning is an archery term for missing the target; it’s a metaphor. It evokes an image of veering off course, ending up at an unintended location. It is used regarding many situations, including harmful behavior, disregarding responsibilities as a people or individual called to a specific purpose, and even having chronic illness or debilitating injuries or cultural identities that prohibit one from full participation in temple worship according to the Torah. The word did not always imply wrongdoing but simply any behavior or condition not aligned with fulfilling responsibilities traced out by the Hebrew Bible and lived out by Jesus.
x Or ‘knowledge’.
y The Greek noun entrope is traditionally translated as “shame,” but the word has a broader semantic range that includes deference, respect, corrective awareness, and social propriety. It derives from entrepo, meaning “to turn toward, show regard, respect, or feel shame,” and depending on context, it can describe a sense of disgrace, a call to self-correction, or an appeal to proper conduct. The phrase pros entropen humin lalo suggests an intended result rather than a mere statement of fact, meaning Paul’s words are meant to bring about a shift in their awareness. In 2 Thessalonians 3:14–15, the same word describes how a person should be “brought to entrope” through correction but not treated as an enemy—implying that entrope is not purely about disgrace but about realigning oneself with the truth.
z Traditionally, ‘glory’.
aa The Greek phrase soma psuchikon is traditionally translated as “natural body” or “physical body,” but this rendering can be misleading. The term psuchikos comes from psuche, which refers to the life-force or soul that animates a person, not merely “nature” or “physicality” in a modern sense. In contrast, soma pneumatikon is not about immateriality but about being animated by pneuma. The translation “a body animated by a person’s own life-force” preserves the contrast between human vitality (psuche) and divine animation (pneuma).
bb Citation of Genesis 2:7.
cc The Greek word choikos is traditionally translated as “of the dust,” “of the earth,” or “earthly,” but its meaning is more specifically connected to choos, which refers to loose soil, dust, or clay. The term evokes the creation of the first human in Genesis 2:7.
dd Or ‘worn.’ The imagery is of being covered in the image of the earthen one or the heavenly one, wearing it while going through life.
ee The Greek word thneton is traditionally translated as “mortal,” but it more precisely describes something that is not just capable of dying but is inherently subject to Death (thanatos). Paul is not simply describing a natural lifespan but the broader theological reality of human frailty under the power of Death.
ff The Greek word athanasian is traditionally translated as “immortality,” but it more significantly means “not being subject to Death.” Paul’s use emphasizes the transformation from a state of being subject to Death to a state where death no longer has power.
gg Citation of Isaiah 25:8.
hh Most translations include this question in the quotation; however, it seems more likely to be Paul’s response to the Isaiah quotation in the previous verse, leading into the Hosea quotation in the next sentence. The Hosea quotation does not include this first question in either the Hebrew or Greek versions of Hosea.
ii Quotation of Hosea 13:14.
jj The Greek word kentron is often translated as “sting,” but its primary meaning is a sharp point used to prod or drive something forward, such as an ox goad. The context here aligns much closer to the goad: what drives something forward and directs its path.
kk Many traditional translations render ho nomos here as “the law,” often interpreting it as Mosaic Law. However, in this context, nomos refers more broadly to human norms—structured patterns of life, customs, and socially reinforced expectations that govern how people live. Deviation finds strength in these culturally reinforced ways humans attempt to preserve their lives, status, and security.
ll Notice the contrast of being “immovable” with being prodded into movement by the goad of deviation.
mm See 1 Corinthians 15:10.