1 Corinthians 12:22

1 Corinthians 12:22 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary:
• New International Version (NIV)On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,
• English Standard Version (ESV)On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,
• New King James Version (NKJV)No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary.

Context of 1 Corinthians 12:22

20But as it is, a body has many parts. It is still only one whole body. 21For that reason, the eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I do not need you.’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I do not need you.’ No. Even the parts of a body that seem to be weaker are very necessary. 23Think about the parts of our body that are not very special. We dress them carefully! And we take special care of those parts that we do not want people to see. 24But we do not need to do this with the beautiful parts of our body. God has put all these parts together in one body. Some parts seem to be not very special. But God has shown that those parts are very valuable.

1 Corinthians 12:22 word by word

ἀλλὰ πολλῷ μᾶλλον τὰ δοκοῦντα μέλη τοῦ σώματος ἀσθενέστερα ὑπάρχειν ἀναγκαῖά ἐστιν,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Nayἀλλάalla · butG235
• muchπολύςpolus polos · muchG4183
• moreμᾶλλονmallon · moreG3123
• those membersμέλοςmelos · memberG3196
• of the bodyὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• of the bodyσῶμαsōma · bodyG4983
• seemδοκέωdokeō · to thinkG1380
• to beὑπάρχωhuparchō · be alreadyG5225
• more feebleἀσθενήςasthenēs · weakG772
• areεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• necessaryἀναγκαῖοςanagkaios · necessaryG316

Cross-references for 1 Corinthians 12:22

• Proverbs 14:28A king who rules many people will receive great honour. But a ruler with only a few people will have nothing in the end.
• Ecclesiastes 4:9Two people who work together are better than one person who works alone. They can help each other to work well.
• Ecclesiastes 5:9All of them take something for themselves from the land. The king himself receives his share of the crops.
• Ecclesiastes 9:14There was a small city and only a few people lived in it. A powerful king came to attack that city. His army made their camp around the city. They built heaps of earth all around it.
• 2 Corinthians 1:11We also know that you continue to help us as you pray for us. As many people pray for us, they will thank God when he answers their prayers. They will see that God is very kind to us, and they will thank him.

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 12:22

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 22Those members - which seem to be more feeble - These, and the less honorable and uncomely, mentioned in the next verses, seem to mean the principal viscera, such as the heart, lungs, stomach, and intestinal canal. These, when compared with the arms and limbs, are comparatively weak; and some of them, considered in themselves, uncomely and less honorable; yet these are more essential to life than any of the others. A man may lose an eye by accident, and an…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 22Which seem to be more feeble - Weaker than the rest; which seem less able to bear fatigue and to encounter difficulties; which are more easily injured, and which become more easily affected with disease. It is possible that Paul may here refer to the brain, the lungs, the heart, etc., as more feeble in their structure, and more liable to disease than the hands and the feet, etc., and in reference to which disease is more dangerous and fatal. Are more…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-26Verses 12-26 Christ and his church form one body, as Head and members. Christians become members of this body by baptism. The outward rite is of Divine institution; it is a sign of the new birth, and is called therefore the washing of regeneration, Tit 3:5. But it is by the Spirit, only by the renewing of the Holy Ghost, that we are made members of Christ's body. And by communion with Christ at the Lord's supper, we are strengthened, not by drinking the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 22-26The weaker and less noticeable body parts are very important. They need special care and respect for the whole body to work well.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2222. more feeble--more susceptible of injury: for example, the brain, the belly, the eye. Their very feebleness, so far from doing away with the need for them, calls forth our greater care for their preservation, as being felt "necessary."Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Corinthians 12:22

• Church

In the dictionaries

• Administration
• Bond
• Covet
• Temper
• Tongues, Gift of
• Church Government
• Communion; (fellowship)
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the
• Ephesians, Epistle to the
• Gift

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings