1 Corinthians 15:5-58

5and that 1He appeared to 23Cephas, then 4to the twelve. 6After that He appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some 5have fallen asleep; 7then He appeared to 67James, then to 8all the apostles; 8and last of all, as 9to one untimely born, 10He appeared to me also. 9For I am 11the least of the apostles, 12and not fit to be called an apostle, because I 13persecuted the church of God. 10But by 14the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I 15labored even more than all of them, yet 16not I, but the grace of God with me. 11Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

12Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there 17is no resurrection of the dead? 13But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised; 14and 18if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, your faith also is in vain. 15Moreover, we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified 19against God that He 20raised 21Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised; 17and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; 22you are still in your sins. 18Then also those who 23have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19If we have hoped in Christ only in this life, we are 24of all people most to be pitied.

20But the fact is, Christ 25has been raised from the dead, the 26first fruits of those who 27are asleep. 21For since 28by a man death came, by a Man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22For 29as in Adam all die, so also in 30Christ all will be made alive. 23But each in his own order: Christ 31the first fruits, after that 32those who are Christ’s at 33His coming, 24then comes the end, when He hands over 34the kingdom to our 35God and Father, when He has abolished 36all rule and all authority and power. 25For He must reign 37until He has put all His enemies under His feet. 26The last enemy that will be 38abolished is death. 27For 39He has put all things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “40All things are put in subjection,” it is clear that 41this excludes the Father who put all things in subjection to Him. 28When 42all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that 43God may be all in all.

29For otherwise, what will those do who are baptized 44for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized 45for them? 30Why are we also 46in danger every hour? 31I affirm, brothers and sisters, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, that 47I die daily. 32If 48from human motives I 49fought with wild beasts at 50Ephesus, what good is it to me? If the dead are not raised, 51let’s eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. 3352Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” 3453Sober up 54morally and stop sinning, for some have 55no knowledge of God. 56I say this to your shame.

35But 57someone will say, “How are 58the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?” 3659You fool! That which you 60sow does not come to life unless it dies; 37and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of 61something else. 38But God gives it a body just as He wished, and 62to each of the seeds a body of its own. 39All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of mankind, another flesh of animals, another flesh of birds, and another of fish. 40There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. 41There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.

4263So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown 6465a perishable body, it is raised 6667an imperishable body; 43it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in 68glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44it is sown a 69natural body, it is raised a 70spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45So also it is written: “The first 71man, Adam, became a living 72person.” The 73last Adam was a 74life-giving spirit. 46However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. 47The first man is 75from the earth, 7677earthy; the second Man is from heaven. 48As is the earthy one, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly One, 78so also are those who are heavenly. 49Just as we have 79borne the image of the earthy, 80we 81will also bear the image of the heavenly.

50Now I say this, brothers and sisters, that 82flesh and blood cannot 83inherit the kingdom of God; nor does 84the perishable inherit 8586the imperishable. 51Behold, I am telling you a 8788mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be 89changed, 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for 90the trumpet will sound, and 91the dead will be raised 92imperishable, and 93we will be changed. 53For this 94perishable must put on 9596the imperishable, and this 97mortal must put on immortality. 54But when this 98perishable puts on 99the imperishable, and this mortal puts on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written: “100Death has been swallowed up in victory. 55101Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?” 56The sting of 102death is sin, and 103the power of sin is the Law; 57but 104thanks be to God, who gives us the 105victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58106Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be firm, immovable, always excelling in 107the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.