1 Corinthians 15:1–28

Resurrection Essential to the Gospel

15Now brothers, I want to clarify ^rfor you the gospel I proclaimed to you; you received it and have taken your stand ^son it. ²You are also saved by it, if you hold to the message I proclaimed to you—unless you believed for no purpose. ^tu3For I passed on to you ^vas most important what I also received:

that Christ died ^wfor our sins

according to the Scriptures, ^x

⁴that He was buried, ^y

that He was raised on the third day ^z

according to the Scriptures, ^a

⁵and that He appeared to Cephas, ^b

then to the Twelve. ^c

⁶Then He appeared to over 500 brothers at one time; ^d

most of them are still alive,

but some have fallen asleep.

⁷Then He appeared to James, ^e

then to all the apostles. ^f

⁸Last of all, as to one abnormally born, ^gh

He also appeared to me. ⁱ

⁹For I am the least of the apostles, ^junworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted ^kthe church of God. ¹⁰But by God’s grace I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not ineffective. However, I worked more than any of them, yet not I, but God’s grace that was with me. ^l11Therefore, whether it is I or they, so we proclaim and so you have believed.

Resurrection Essential to the Faith

¹²Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, ^mhow can some of you say, “There is no resurrection of the dead”? ⁿ¹³But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; ¹⁴and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is without foundation, and so is your faith. ^o15In addition, we are found to be false witnesses ^pabout God, because we have testified ^qabout God that He raised up Christ—whom He did not raise up if in fact the dead are not raised. ¹⁶For if the dead are not raised, Christ has not been raised. ¹⁷And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. ¹⁸Therefore, those who have fallen asleep in Christ ^rhave also perished. ¹⁹If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone.

Christ’s Resurrection Guarantees Ours

²⁰But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits ^sof those who have fallen asleep. ²¹For since death ^tcame through a man, ^uthe resurrection of the dead also comes through a man. ^v22For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. ^w23But each in his own order: ^xChrist, the firstfruits; afterward, at His coming, those who belong to Christ. ²⁴Then comes the end, ^ywhen He hands over the kingdom to God the Father, ^zwhen He abolishes all rule and all authority and power. ^a25For He must reign ^buntil He puts all His enemies under His feet. ^c26The last enemy to be abolished is death. ^d27For God has put everything under His feet. ^efBut when it says “everything” is put under Him, it is obvious that He who puts everything under Him is the exception. ²⁸And when everything is subject to Christ, then the Son ^gHimself will also be subject to the One who subjected everything to Him, so that God may be all in all. ^h