1 Corinthians 12:19
What does 1 Corinthians 12:19 mean?
A plain-English look at 1 Corinthians 12:19 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What 1 Corinthians 12:19 means
Paul asks, if all were one member, where would the body be? The expected answer is that the body would not exist as such. A single part cannot constitute a living organism. Applied to the church, this means that uniformity destroys the very thing it seeks to magnify. The beauty and strength of Christ’s body come from coordinated variety. By posing the question, Paul makes readers reflect on the obvious: difference is essential. This encourages believers to accept their distinct roles and to value others, because without the many, there is no true body.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000And if they were all one member, where were the body?
KJV
King James Version · 1611And if they were all one member, where were the body?
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901And if they were all one member, where were the body?
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949And if they were all one part, where would the body be?
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862and if all were one member, where the body?
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752And if they all were one member, where would be the body?
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890But if all were one member, where the body?
Context
This rhetorical question follows God’s sovereign arrangement in verse 18 and leads into verse 20’s affirming statement. Paul is driving home the necessity of multiplicity before addressing the opposite error of superiority in verses 21–26. The logic is cumulative: diversity is necessary (verses 17–19), God-ordered (verse 18), and constitutive of the body itself (verse 19). Next, verse 20 will summarize the point succinctly and set up the rebuke of dismissive attitudes.
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