| BibleFacts |
3 Corinthians
|
Translations |
From Corinth to Paul
Stephanus and the presbyters who are with him, Daphnus, Eubulus, Theophilus and Xenon, to
Paul their brother in the Lord, greeting.
Two men have come to Corinth, Simon and Cleobius, who pervert the faith of many through
pernicious words we want you to respond to. We have never heard such things from you or
the other apostles. What ever you and the other apostles teach we will believe. The Lord
has shown mercy to us, since you are still alive we wish to hear from you again. Please do
write or come to us. We believe, what has been revealed to Theonoe, that the Lord
delivered you out of the hand of the lawless one. What they teach is as follows:
| 1. We must not appeal to the prophets 2. God is not Almighty 3. There is no resurrection of the flesh 4. Creation is not Gods work |
5. The Lord did not come in the flesh 6. The Lord was not born of Mary 7. The world is not of God but the Angels |
So brother, hurry and come here, that the church here in Corinth may remain pure, and the foolishness of these men may be made known to all. Farewell in the Lord.
From Paul to Corinth
Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ, to the brothers in Corinth, greeting!
Since I am in prison, I am not surprised that the teachings of the evil one are quickly
gaining ground. My Lord Jesus Christ will quickly come, since he is rejected by those who
falsify His words. I delivered to you from the beginning what I received from the apostles
who were before me, who were at all times together with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our Lord Jesus Christ was born of Mary of the seed of David. The Holy Spirit was sent from
Heaven by the Father into her, that he might come into this world to redeem all flesh
through his own flesh, and that he might raise up from the dead we who are fleshly, just
as He has shown Himself as our example. Since man was molded by his Father, man was sought
for when he was lost, that he might be quickened by adoption into sonship. The almighty
God, who made heaven and earth, first sent the prophets to the Jews, that they might turn
from their sins; for he had determined how to save the house of Israel, therefore he sent
a portion of the spirit of Christ into the prophets, who at many times proclaimed the
faultless worship of God. But since the prince who was unrighteous wished to be God, he
laid hands on them and killed them, and so all the flesh of men were bound to passions.
But God, the almighty, who is righteous and would not repudiate his own creation, sent the
Holy Spirit to Mary the Galilean, who believed with all her heart, and she received the
Holy Spirit into her womb that Jesus might enter the world, in order that the evil one
might be conquered by the same flesh which he held sway, and be convinced that he was not
God.
For by his own body Jesus Christ saved all flesh and brought it to eternal life through
faith, that he might present a temple of righteousness in his own body, through whom we
are redeemed. These are not children of righteousness but of wrath, who reject the
providence of God, saying that heaven and earth and all that is in them are not the works
of the Father. They are themselves therefore children of wrath, for they have the accursed
faith of the serpent. From them turn away, and flee from there teaching! For you are not
sons of disobedience but of the church most dearly beloved. This is why the time of the
resurrection is proclaimed.
As for those who tell you there is no resurrection of the flesh, for them there is no
resurrection, who do not believe in Him who has risen. You men of Corinth must understand
that they dont know about the sowing of wheat or other seeds. That they are cast
naked to the ground and when they have perished below and are raised again by the will of
God in a body and clothed. The body is not only raised up, but abundantly blessed. And
consider not only the seeds, but nobler bodies.
You know how Jonah the son of Amathios, when he would not preach in Nineveh but fled, was
swallowed by a whale and after three days and three nights God heard Jonahs prayer
out of the deepest hell, and no part of him was corrupted, not even an eyelid. How much
more, you of so little faith, will he raise up you who have believed in Christ Jesus, as
he himself rose up? And if, when a corpse was thrown by the children of Israel on the
bones of the prophet Elisha, the mans body rose up, so you also who have been cast
upon the body and bones and spirit of the Lord will rise up on that day with your flesh
whole.
But if you receive anything else, do not cause me trouble; for I have these fetters on my
hands that I may gain Christ, and his marks on my body that I may attain to the
resurrection form the dead. And whoever abides by the rule which he received by the
prophets and the holy Gospel, he shall receive a reward and when he has risen form the
dead shall obtain eternal life. But to him that turns aside form them - there is fire with
him and those who go before him in the way, since they are men without God, a generation
of vipers; from these turn away in the power of the Lord
May peace, grace and love be with you. Amen.
| www.biblefacts.org | Date: 7-1997 |