1 Corinthians 1:9
What does 1 Corinthians 1:9 mean?
A plain-English look at 1 Corinthians 1:9 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What 1 Corinthians 1:9 means
Paul grounds everything in God’s character: God is faithful. He called the Corinthians into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Christian unity is not a club formed by shared preferences but a participation in the life of Christ to which God summons His people. Faithfulness means God will not abandon His work or His promises. Their calling into fellowship underscores that Christianity is relational—union with Christ and communion with His people. This reminder answers their divisions: since God called them into one shared life in Jesus, they must live consistently with that call, trusting God’s reliability more than their own wisdom or the charisma of favored leaders.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000God is faithful, through whom ye were called into the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
KJV
King James Version · 1611God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901God is faithful, through whom ye were called into the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949God is true, through whom you have been given a part with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862faithful <FI>is<Fi> God, through whom ye were called to the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752God is faithful: by whom you are called unto the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890God [is] faithful, by whom ye have been called into [the] fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
Context
This verse concludes the thanksgiving (verses 4–9) with a theological anchor: God’s faithfulness and their shared fellowship in Christ. It prepares for the transition to exhortation in verse 10, where Paul appeals for unity “through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The assurance of God’s sustaining grace (verses 7–8) and His faithfulness (verse 9) provides both comfort and obligation: because of who God is and what He has done, the church must reject divisions and embrace a common mind and judgment in Christ.
v.8who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye be unreproveable in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
v.9This passage
v.10Now I beseech you, brethren, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Romans 8:28
And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to his purpose.
- John 15:4
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me.
- Titus 1:2
in hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before times eternal;
- 1 Thessalonians 2:12
to the end that ye should walk worthily of God, who calleth you into his own kingdom and glory.
- 1 John 1:7
but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
- Psalms 89:33
But my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
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Bible Verses About Faithfulness
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