1 Corinthians 15:11
What does 1 Corinthians 15:11 mean?
A plain-English look at 1 Corinthians 15:11 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What 1 Corinthians 15:11 means
Whether it is Paul or the other apostles who preached, the content is the same and the Corinthians believed it. Unity of proclamation validates the message. The church’s faith did not rest on competing versions of Jesus but on one gospel, centered in His death and resurrection. By reminding them of this, Paul undercuts any attempt to separate his teaching from others they respected. If all apostolic voices affirm Christ’s resurrection, the Corinthians cannot reject the resurrection of the dead without rejecting the very message they initially embraced. The issue is not personalities, but truth held in common and received by them.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000Whether then it be I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.
KJV
King James Version · 1611Therefore whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901Whether then it be I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949If then it is I who am the preacher, or they, this is our word, and to this you have given your faith.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862whether, then, I or they, so we preach, and so ye did believe.
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752For whether I or they, so we preach: and so you have believed.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890Whether, therefore, I or they, thus we preach, and thus ye have believed.
Context
This verse concludes the opening section (vv. 1–11): gospel received, content summarized, witnesses named, grace acknowledged, and unity affirmed. With that foundation, Paul turns to confront the contradiction in Corinth—some deny the resurrection of the dead (v. 12). The context equips readers to see that what follows is not Paul’s private theory but the necessary inference of the shared gospel. Verses 12–19 will thus argue that without resurrection, Christian preaching, faith, and hope collapse.
v.10But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not found vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
v.11This passage
v.12Now if Christ is preached that he hath been raised from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- 1 Corinthians 2:2
For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
- 1 Corinthians 15:3
For I delivered unto you first of all that which also I received: that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
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