1 Corinthians 1:25

1 Corinthians 1:25 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
• New International Version (NIV)For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.
• English Standard Version (ESV)For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Context of 1 Corinthians 1:25

23So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense. 24But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. 26Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. 27Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.

1 Corinthians 1:25 word by word

ὅτι τὸ μωρὸν τοῦ θεοῦ σοφώτερον τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐστὶν καὶ τὸ ἀσθενὲς τοῦ θεοῦ ἰσχυρότερον τῶν ἀνθρώπωνRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Becauseὅτιhoti · that/since: sinceG3754
• the foolishnessμωρόςmōros · foolishG3474
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• wiserσοφόςsophos · wiseG4680
• than menἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• the weaknessἀσθενήςasthenēs · weakG772
• strongerἰσχυρόςischuros · strongG2478

Cross-references for 1 Corinthians 1:25

• 1 Corinthians 1:18The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.
• Exodus 13:17When Pharaoh finally let the people go, God did not lead them along the main road that runs through Philistine territory, even though that was the shortest route to the Promised Land. God said, “If the people are faced with a battle, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.”
• Exodus 14:2“Order the Israelites to turn back and camp by Pi-hahiroth between Migdol and the sea. Camp there along the shore, across from Baal-zephon.
• Joshua 6:2But the Lord said to Joshua, “I have given you Jericho, its king, and all its strong warriors.
• Judges 7:2The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength.
• Judges 15:15Then he found the jawbone of a recently killed donkey. He picked it up and killed 1,000 Philistines with it.
• 1 Samuel 17:40He picked up five smooth stones from a stream and put them into his shepherd’s bag. Then, armed only with his shepherd’s staff and sling, he started across the valley to fight the Philistine.
• 1 Kings 20:14Ahab asked, “How will he do it?” And the prophet replied, “This is what the Lord says: The troops of the provincial commanders will do it.” “Should we attack first?” Ahab asked. “Yes,” the prophet answered.
• Zechariah 4:6Then he said to me, “This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
• Zechariah 12:7“The Lord will give victory to the rest of Judah first, before Jerusalem, so that the people of Jerusalem and the royal line of David will not have greater honor than the rest of Judah.
• Romans 11:33Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 1:25

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 25The foolishness of God is wiser, etc. - The meaning of these strong expressions is, that the things of God's appointment, which seem to men foolishness, are infinitely beyond the highest degree of human wisdom; and those works of God, which appear to superficial observers weak and contemptible, surpass all the efforts of human power. The means which God has appointed for the salvation of men are so wisely imagined and so energetically powerful, that all…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 25Because the foolishness of God - That which God appoints, requires, commands, does, etc., which appears to people to be foolish. The passage is not to be understood as affirming that it is really foolish or unwise; but that it appears so to people - Perhaps the apostle here refers to those parts of the divine administration where the wisdom of the plan is not seen; or where the reason of what God does is concealed. Is wiser than men - Is better adapted to…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-25Verses 17-25 Paul had been bred up in Jewish learning; but the plain preaching of a crucified Jesus, was more powerful than all the oratory and philosophy of the heathen world. This is the sum and substance of the gospel. Christ crucified is the foundation of all our hopes, the fountain of all our joys. And by his death we live. The preaching of salvation for lost sinners by the sufferings and death of the Son of God, if explained and faithfully applied…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 25What the non-believing world sees as foolish and weak (Christ and the message of the cross) is actually wiser and stronger than anything else. It solves the world's biggest problem, which is sin, and defeats all evil forces against people.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2525. foolishness of God--that is, God's plan of salvation which men deem "foolishness." weakness of God--Christ "crucified through weakness" (2Co 13:4, the great stumbling-block of the Jews), yet "living by the power of God." So He perfects strength out of the weakness of His servants (1Co 2:3; 2Co 12:9).Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Corinthians 1:25

• Boasting
• God Continued...
• Gospel
• Power
• Reasoning
• Salvation
• Wisdom

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Confirm
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the
• Cross
• Disputer
• Foolishness
• Household
• Join
• Preach

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 1

• 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