Bible Buk Namba 46​—1 Corinthians

Man wea Raetem: Paul

Ples Hem Raetem: Ephesus

Taem Hem Finis Raetem: c. 55 C.E.

CORINTH hem “wanfala bigfala taon wea staka pipol savve long hem and hem ova tumas long samting bilong body, wea nogud fasin bilong olketa long East and West hem join.”a Hem stap midolwan long Peloponnesus and continental Greece, Corinth stap long midol bilong olketa road wea go for main land. Long taem bilong aposol Paul, population long Corinth hem 400,000 wea Rome, Alexandria, and Syrian Antioch nomoa winim diswan. Aegean Sea hem stap long east bilong Corinth, and Gulf bilong Corinth and Ionian Sea hem stap long west. So Corinth, kapitol bilong province bilong Achaia, wea garem tufala port long Cenchreae and Lechaeum, hem wanfala important ples for duim bisnis. And tu hem wanfala main ples wea savve bilong Greece hem stap. “From hem richfala ples,” wanfala savveman hem sei, “dastawe plande pipol savve long disfala ples; and tu olketa savve long dirty fasin bilong olketa pipol wea stap long there.”b Midolwan long olketa heathen worship long disfala ples, pipol worshipim Aphrodite (semsem olsem Venus bilong olketa long Rome). Worship long Corinth bringim wei for ova tumas witim samting bilong body.

² Long disfala ples bilong bisnis wea no garem gud fasin nao aposol Paul hem go long hem long 50 C.E. Insaed 18 month wea hem stap, wanfala Christian kongregeson hem start long there. (Acts 18:1-11) Paul barava lovem olketa wea biliv long there wea hem karem go firstaem gud nius abaotem Christ long olketa! Thru long leta hem remindim olketa abaotem wan mind wea olketa garem long spiritual wei, taem hem sei: “Nomata iufala maet garem ten thousand teacher long Christ, iufala barava no garem plande dadi; from thru long Christ Jesus mi kamap dadi bilong iufala thru long gud nius.”—1 Cor. 4:15.

³ From Paul barava wari long spiritual saed bilong olketa, hem raetem first leta go long olketa Christian long Corinth long mek thri missionary gogo bilong hem. Samfala year go pas finis from taem wea hem stap long Corinth. Long 55 C.E., Paul stap long Ephesus. Hem kasem wanfala leta from disfala niufala kongregeson long Corinth, and hem need for raet go bak. And tu, hem kasem samfala report wea nogud tumas. (7:1; 1:11; 5:1; 11:18) Olketa report hia barava nogud tumas dastawe hem no story abaotem olketa go kasem olketa firstfala verse bilong chapter 7 long leta bilong hem. Bikos long olketa report hia nao dastawe Paul barava feelim hao hem mas raet go long olketa Christian long Corinth.

⁴ Bat hao nao iumi savve Paul raetem Wan Corinthians long Ephesus? Bikos taem hem finisim disfala leta witim olketa greeting, aposol talem greeting bilong Aquila and Prisca (Priscilla). (16:19) Acts 18:18, 19 showim hao olketa muv from Corinth go long Ephesus. From Aquila and Priscilla stap long there and Paul hem talem greeting bilong tufala long Wan Corinthians, diswan showim hem mas stap long Ephesus taem hem raetem disfala leta. Wanfala point wea no givim iumi eni daot nao toktok bilong Paul long 1 Corinthians 16:8: “Bat mi stap long Ephesus go kasem taem bilong Pentecost.” So Paul nao raetem Wan Corinthians long Ephesus, klosap long end bilong taem wea hem stap long there.

⁵ No eni daot stap hao Wan Corinthians and Tu Corinthians olketa tru evribit. Paul nao raetem tufala leta hia and olketa firstfala Christian acceptim olsem part bilong Bible, wea olketa keepim. For tok stret, wanfala leta wea olketa kolem Wan Clement wea garem date bilong 95 C.E. talem toktok from Wan Corinthians sixfala taem. From hem talem toktok from Wan Corinthians, man wea raetem leta hia encouragem olketa wea bae readim disfala leta for “lukluk long leta bilong aposol Paul wea kasem blessing.”c Justin Martyr, Athenagoras, Irenaeus, and Tertullian iusim toktok from Wan Corinthians tu. Strongfala pruv hem stap for biliv plande part long olketa leta bilong Paul, wea insaed diswan hem Wan and Tu Corinthians, “olketa putim tugeta and pablisim insaed long last tenfala year bilong first century.”d

⁶ Firstfala leta bilong Paul for olketa long Corinth givim iumi chance for savve gud long kongregeson long Corinth. Olketa Christian hia garem olketa problem and kwestin. Kongregeson hem divaed, from samfala followim man. Barava nogud dirty fasin kamap tu. Samfala stap long olketa famili wea divaed. Waswe, bae olketa gohed for stap witim partner wea no biliv or nomoa? And waswe long wei for kaikaim meat wea olketa sakrifaesim long idol? Waswe, olketa mas join insaed wei for kaikaim? Olketa long Corinth needim advaes long wei for olketa conductim olketa meeting, wea insaed diswan hem Evening Kaikai Bilong Lord. Wanem nao position bilong olketa woman insaed long kongregeson? And tu, samfala midolwan long olketa no biliv long resurrection. Olketa garem plande problem. Bat, aposol Paul hem barava interest for helpem olketa long Corinth long spiritual saed.

⁷ From samting wea happen insaed long kongregeson and samting wea happen long Corinth, wea pipol garem gudfala living and dirty fasin, wea semsem olsem distaem, nambawan kaonsel bilong Paul wea hem raetem witim help from God, needim iumi for barava minim. Samting wea Paul talem hem garem bigfala meaning long taem bilong iumi, dastawe sapos iumi tingting gud long firstfala leta bilong hem go long olketa brata and sista long Corinth, bae iumi kasem gud samting. Tingim feeling long datfala taem and ples. Tingting strong, olsem kongregeson long Corinth maet duim, taem iumi ting raonem olketa strongfala toktok bilong Paul go long olketa long Corinth bifor.

WEI WEA HEM HELPEM IUMI

²³ Disfala leta bilong aposol Paul barava helpem iumi for minim moa olketa Hebrew Scripture from hem garem plande toktok bilong hem. Long mek-ten chapter, Paul hem sei olketa Israelite wea stap anda long Moses, drink from datfala bigfala spiritual ston, wea minim Christ. (1 Cor. 10:4; Num. 20:11) Then hem gohed for talem olketa nogud samting wea kamaot from wei for laekem nogud samting, olsem example bilong olketa Israelite anda long Moses showimaot, and hem sei moa: “Olketa samting hia happen long olketa olsem example, and olketa raetem for wanfala warning for iumi wea stap long taem bilong end bilong system.” No letem iumi depend long iumiseleva, for tingse iumi kanduit foldaon! (1 Cor. 10:11, 12; Num. 14:2; 21:5; 25:9) Hem talem moa wanfala tokpiksa long wei for iusim datfala law. Hem point go long communion sakrifaes bilong Israel for showim wei wea olketa wea kaikaim bred and drinkim wine long Evening Kaikai Bilong Lord mas kaikai and drink from tebol bilong Jehovah long wei wea fitim. Then, for sapotim kaonsel bilong hem hao hem no rong for kaikaim evri samting wea olketa salem long market, hem talem toktok bilong Psalm 24:1, wea sei, “Earth hem bilong Jehovah and evri samting wea fulap long hem.”—1 Cor. 10:18, 21, 26; Ex. 32:6; Lev. 7:11-15

²⁴ For showim wei wea “olketa samting wea God redyim for olketa wea lovem hem” hem nambawan and “tingting bilong olketa wise man” bilong disfala world hem iusles, Paul iusim moa olketa Hebrew Scripture. (1 Cor. 2:9; 3:20; Isa. 64:4; Ps. 94:11) For sapotim olketa kaonsel bilong hem long chapter 5 long wei for disfellowshipim wanfala wea duim rong, hem talem moa toktok bilong law bilong Jehovah for ‘aotem nogud samting from midolwan long iufala.’ (Deut. 17:7) Taem hem explainim hao hem fit for live followim ministry, Paul point go moa long Law Bilong Moses, wea sei olketa mas no taemap mouth bilong olketa animal wea olketa iusim long waka from hem stopem olketa for kaikai, and olketa Levite long temple mas kasem share bilong olketa from altar.—1 Cor. 9:8-14; Deut. 25:4; 18:1.

²⁵ Iumi kasem nambawan instruction from God from olketa kaonsel insaed firstfala leta bilong Paul for olketa Christian long Corinth! Ting raonem olketa kaonsel againstim wei for divaed and wei for followim olketa man. (Chapter 1-4) Rememberim problem long saed long dirty fasin and hao Paul mekhae long need for garem gudfala and klinfala fasin insaed kongregeson. (Chapter 5, 6) Tingim advaes wea hem givim abaotem wei for stap singol, marit, and separate. (Chapter 7) Tingim kaonsel bilong aposol abaotem olketa kaikai wea olketa offerim long olketa idol, and tu, hao hem barava strongim wei for barava careful for no mekem olketa narawan stambol and wei for foldaon long wei for worshipim idol. (Chapter 8-10) Hem givim kaonsel abaotem stretfala wei for stap anda, story long olketa spiritual present, gudfala story abaotem datfala nambawan fasin bilong love wea stap olowe, wea no savve fail. And datfala aposol barava mekem klia need for garem order long olketa Christian meeting! (Chapter 11-14) Hem defendim resurrection long nambawan wei long leta wea God muvim hem for raetem! (Chapter 15) Evri samting hia hem klia insaed mind—and hem barava helpem olketa Christian distaem!

²⁶ Long bigfala wei, disfala leta mekem iumi minim moa nambawan theme bilong Bible, Kingdom bilong God. Hem givim strongfala warning hao pipol wea no raeteous bae no go insaed Kingdom, and hem listim plande nogud fasin wea bae mekem man no fit for kasem. (1 Cor. 6:9, 10) Bat samting wea moa important, hem minim wei wea resurrection hem join witim Kingdom bilong God. Hem showim wei wea Christ, “olketa firstfrut” bilong resurrection, mas “rul olsem king go kasem taem wea God putim olketa enemy anda long leg bilong hem.” Then, taem hem winim olketa enemy bilong hem, killim olketa dae tu, “hem givim go kingdom long God and Father bilong hem, . . . mekem God mas kamap evri samting long evriwan.” Gogo, long wei wea fulfillim Kingdom promis wea kamap long Eden, Jesus, witim olketa spiritual brata bilong Hem wea resurrect, bae fulfillim evribit wei wea Snek bae kasem kill long hed. Hope bilong olketa wea garem resurrection hope witim Christ Jesus long Kingdom long heven hem barava nambawan. From hope bilong resurrection nao Paul givim kaonsel: “So, olketa brata wea mi lovem, stand strong, no seksek, garem plande samting for duim insaed long waka bilong Lord, from iufala savve iufala no hard waka nating long saed long Lord.”—1 Cor. 15:20-28, 58; Gen. 3:15; Rom. 16:20.

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