1 Corinthians 9
9
Paul’s Use of Freedom
1Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? 2If I am not an apostle to others, at least I am to you; for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.
3My defense to those who examine me is this: 4#9:4 Lit It is not that we have no right to eat and drink, is it?Do we not have a right to eat and drink? 5#9:5 Lit It is not that we have no right to take along...Cephas, is it?Do we not have a right to take along a #9:5 Lit sister, as a wifebelieving wife, even as the rest of the apostles and the brothers of the Lord, and #9:5 Peter’s Aramaic nameCephas? 6Or do only #9:6 Lit I and BarnabasBarnabas and I have no right to refrain from #9:6 I.e., to support themselvesworking? 7Who at any time serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not #9:7 Lit eat fromconsume some of the milk of the flock?
8I am not just asserting these things according to human judgment, am I? Or does the Law not say these things as well? 9For it is written in the Law of Moses: “You shall not muzzle the ox while it is threshing.” God is not concerned about oxen, is He? 10Or is He speaking entirely for our sake? Yes, it was written for our sake, because the plowman ought to plow in hope, and the thresher to thresh in hope of sharing in the crops. 11If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? 12If others share the right over you, do we not more? Nevertheless, we did not use this right, but we endure all things so that we will cause no hindrance to the gospel of Christ. 13Do you not know that those who perform sacred services eat the food of the temple, and those who attend regularly to the altar have their share #9:13 Lit withfrom the altar? 14So also the Lord directed those who proclaim the gospel to get their living from the gospel.
15But I have used none of these things. And I have not written these things so that it will be done so in my case; for it would be better for me to die than that. No one shall make my boast an empty one! 16For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast about, for I am under compulsion; for woe to me if I do not preach the gospel. 17For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a commission nonetheless. 18What, then, is my reward? That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.
19For though I am free from all people, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may gain more. 20To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might gain Jews; to those who are under the Law, I became as one under the Law, though not being under the Law myself, so that I might gain those who are under the Law; 21to those who are without the Law, I became as one without the Law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might gain those who are without the Law. 22To the weak I became weak, that I might gain the weak; I have become all things to all people, so that I may by all means save some. 23I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.
24Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. 25Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. So they do it to obtain a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 26Therefore I run in such a way as not to run aimlessly; I box in such a way, as #9:26 Lit not hittingto avoid hitting air; 27but I strictly discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.
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1 Corinthians 9
9
Paul’s Rights as an Apostle
1Aren’t I free? Aren’t I an apostle? Haven’t I seen Jesus our Lord? Aren’t you the result of my work for the Lord? 2Others might not think of me as an apostle, but I’m certainly one to you! You’re the proof that I am the Lord’s apostle.
3This is how I defend myself when people judge me. 4Don’t we have the right to eat and drink? 5Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us when we travel? That’s what the other apostles do, and the Lord’s brothers and Peter do the same. 6Or are Barnabas and I the only ones who have to do other work to support ourselves while we serve as apostles?
7Who serves as a soldier but has to pay his own expenses? Who plants a vineyard but doesn’t get to eat any of its grapes? Who takes care of a flock but doesn’t get to drink any of the milk from the sheep? 8Do I say this only on human authority? Doesn’t the Law say the same thing? 9It’s written in the Law of Moses, “Don’t stop an ox from eating while it helps separate the grain from the straw.” But is God concerned only for oxen? 10Isn’t he saying that for all of us too? Yes, it was written for us. Whoever plows and whoever separates the grain has a right to hope that they will share in the harvest. 11We have planted spiritual seed among you. Is it too much for us to expect to receive some material things from you? 12If others have the right to receive support from you, don’t we have an even greater right?
But we haven’t used that right. No, we’re prepared to make any sacrifice we have to, rather than let anything get in the way of the good news of Christ.
13Don’t you know that people who serve in the temple get their food from the temple, and that people who serve at the altar eat the food that’s offered on the altar? 14So those who preach the good news should also receive their living from that work. That’s what the Lord has commanded.
15But I haven’t used any of those rights. And I’m not writing this because I want you to do things like that for me. I’d rather die than let anyone take away the satisfaction I get from bragging about this. 16I’m not bragging about preaching the good news. I have to preach the good news—woe to me if I don’t! 17If I preach because I want to, I get a reward. If I preach because I have to, I’m only doing my duty. 18So what reward do I get? Here’s my reward: being able to offer the good news free of charge, without claiming all my rights as a person who preaches the good news.
Paul Uses His Freedom to Share the Good News
19I’m free and I don’t belong to anyone, but I’ve made myself a slave to everyone. I’ve done that to win as many people as I can to Christ. 20To the Jews I became like a Jew, in order to win the Jews. To those who are under the law, I became like one who was under the law, even though I’m actually not under the law myself, in order to win those under the law. 21To those who don’t have the law, I became like one who didn’t have the law (even though I’m not free from God’s law, but under Christ’s law), in order to win those who don’t have the law. 22To those who are weak I became weak, in order to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. 23I do all of this for the sake of the good news, so that I can share in its blessings.
Training to Win the Prize
24Don’t you know that in a race, all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? So run in a way that will get you the prize. 25Everyone who competes in the games trains hard. They do that to get a crown that won’t last. But we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26So I don’t run like someone who doesn’t know where the finish line is. I don’t fight like a boxer who hits nothing but air. 27No, I train my body and bring it under control, so that after I’ve preached to others, I won’t be disqualified myself.
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