1 Corinthians 2:1

1 Corinthians 2:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
• New International Version (NIV)And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God.

Context of 1 Corinthians 2:1

And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. 2For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. 3I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling,

1 Corinthians 2:1 word by word

Κἀγὼ ἐλθὼν πρὸς ὑμᾶς, ἀδελφοί, ἦλθον οὐ καθ᾽ ὑπεροχὴν λόγου ἢ σοφίας καταγγέλλων ὑμῖν τὸ μυστήριον τοῦ θεοῦ.Read the interlinear

• And when I cameἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• to you, brethrenἀδελφόςadelphos · brotherG80
• with superiorityὑπεροχήhuperochē · authorityG5247
• of speechλόγοςlogos · wordG3056
• orἤē · orG2228
• of wisdomσοφίαsophia · wisdomG4678
• proclaimingκαταγγέλλωkataggellō · to proclaimG2605
• testimonyμαρτύριονmarturion · testimonyG3142
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316

Cross-references for 1 Corinthians 2:1

• Acts 18:1After these things he left Athens and went to Corinth.
• 1 Corinthians 2:4and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
• 1 Corinthians 1:17For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void.
• Exodus 4:10Then Moses said to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
• Jeremiah 1:6Then I said, “Alas, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, Because I am a youth.”
• Romans 16:18For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.
• 2 Corinthians 10:10For they say, “His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible.”
• 2 Corinthians 11:6But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things.
• 1 Corinthians 1:6even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you,
• Isaiah 8:20To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn.
• Acts 20:21solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
• Acts 22:18and I saw Him saying to me, ‘Make haste, and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about Me.’
• 2 Thessalonians 1:10when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed--for our testimony to you was believed.
• 1 Timothy 1:11according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted.
• 2 Timothy 1:8Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God,
• 1 John 4:14We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 2:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1When I came to you - Acting suitably to my mission, which was to preach the Gospel, but not with human eloquence, 1 Corinthians 1:17. I declared to you the testimony, the Gospel, of God, not with excellency of speech, not with arts of rhetoric, used by your own philosophers, where the excellence of the speech recommends the matter, and compensates for the want of solidity and truth: on the contrary, the testimony concerning Christ and his salvation is so…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1And I, brethren - Keeping up the tender and affectionate style of address. When I came unto you - When I came at first to preach the gospel at Corinth. Acts 18:1 ff. Came not with excellency of speech - Came not with graceful and attractive eloquence. The apostle here evidently alludes to that nice ant studied choice of language; to those gracefully formed sentences, and to that skill of arrangement in discourse and argument which was so much an object of…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The plain manner in which the apostle preached Christ crucified. (1-5) The wisdom contained in this doctrine. (6-9) It cannot be duly known but by the Holy Spirit. (10-16) Verses 1-5 Christ, in his person, and offices, and sufferings, is the sum and substance of the gospel, and ought to be the great subject of a gospel minister's preaching, but not so as to leave out other parts of God's revealed truth and will. Paul preached the whole counsel of God. Few…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1When I came to you: see Acts 18:1–17. with eloquence or wisdom: Human wisdom and philosophy do not bring people to Christ (see 1 Corinthians 1:17, 21; 2:2). The message of the cross has its own power to change the human heart (see 1:17; Romans 1:16; Galatians 6:14). the testimony about God: See study note on 1 Corinthians 2:7.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-161Co 2:1-16. Paul's Subject of Preaching, Christ Crucified, Not in Worldly, but in Heavenly, Wisdom among the Perfect. 1. And I--"So I" [Conybeare] as one of the "foolish, weak, and despised" instruments employed by God (1Co 1:27, 28); "glorying in the Lord," not in man's wisdom (1Co 1:31). Compare 1Co 1:23, "We." when I came--(Ac 18:1, &c.). Paul might, had he pleased, have used an ornate style, having studied secular learning at Tarsus of Cilicia, which…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Corinthians 2:1

• Humility
• Minister, Christian
• Philosophy
• Preaching
• Reasoning
• Wisdom
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the
• Judge
• Lord
• Mystery
• Spiritually
• Testimony
• Wisdom
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 2

• 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
• 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