10Brothers and sisters, here is what I want you to know about our people who lived long ago. They were all led by the cloud. They all walked through the Red Sea. ²They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. ³They all ate the same supernatural food. ⁴They all drank the same supernatural water. They drank from the supernatural rock that went with them. That rock was Christ.

⁵But God was not pleased with most of them. Their bodies were scattered all over the desert.

⁶Now those things happened as examples for us. They are supposed to keep us from longing for evil things, as the people of Israel did.

⁷So don’t worship statues of gods, as some of them did. It is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up to dance wildly in front of their god.” ⁸We should not commit sexual sins, as some of them did. In one day 23,000 of them died. ⁹We should not put the Lord to the test, as some of them did. They were killed by snakes. ¹⁰Don’t tell your leaders how unhappy you are with them. That’s what some of the people of Israel did. And they were killed by the destroying angel.

¹¹Those things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who are living at the time when God’s work is being completed. ¹²So be careful. When you think you are standing firm, you might fall.

¹³You are tempted in the same way all other human beings are. God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted any more than you can take. But when you are tempted, God will give you a way out so that you can stand up under it.

Sharing in the Body and Blood of Christ

¹⁴My dear friends, run away from statues of gods. Don’t worship them. ¹⁵I’m talking to people who are reasonable. Judge for yourselves what I say.

¹⁶When we give thanks for the cup at the Lord’s Supper, aren’t we sharing in the blood of Christ? When we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ? ¹⁷Just as there is one loaf, so we who are many are one body. We all eat from the one loaf.

¹⁸Think about the people of Israel. Don’t those who eat the offerings share in the altar? ¹⁹Do I mean that what is offered to a statue of a god is anything? Do I mean that a statue of a god is anything? ²⁰No! But what is offered by those who worship statues of gods is really offered to demons. It is not offered to God. I don’t want you to be sharing with demons.

²¹You can’t drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too. You can’t have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. ²²Are we trying to make the Lord jealous? Are we stronger than he is?

The Believer’s Freedom

²³You say, “Everything is permitted.” But not everything is good for us. Again you say, “Everything is permitted.” But not everything builds us up. ²⁴We should not look out for our own interests. Instead, we should look out for the interests of others.

²⁵Eat anything that is sold in the meat market. Don’t ask if it’s right or wrong. ²⁶Scripture says, “The earth belongs to the Lord. And so does everything in it.”

²⁷Suppose an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go. Then eat anything that is put in front of you. Don’t ask if it’s right or wrong.

²⁸But suppose someone says to you, “This food has been offered to a statue of a god.” Then don’t eat it. Keep in mind the good of the one who told you. And don’t eat because of a sense of what is right and wrong. ²⁹I’m talking about the other person’s sense of what is right and wrong, not yours.

Why should my freedom be judged by what someone else thinks? ³⁰Suppose I give thanks when I eat. Then why should I be blamed for eating food I thank God for?

³¹So eat and drink and do everything else for the glory of God. ³²Don’t do anything that causes another person to trip and fall. It doesn’t matter if that person is a Jew or a Greek or a member of God’s church.

³³Follow my example. I try to please everyone in every way. I’m not looking out for what is good for me. I’m looking out for the interests of others. I do it so that they might be saved.

11Follow my example, just as I follow the example of Christ.

Proper Worship

²I praise you for being faithful in remembering me. I also praise you for staying true to all my teachings, just as I gave them to you.

³Now I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ. The head of the woman is the man. And the head of Christ is God. ⁴Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered brings shame on his head. ⁵And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered brings shame on her head. It is just as if her head were shaved.

⁶What if a woman does not cover her head? She should have her hair cut off. But it is shameful for her to cut her hair or shave it off. So she should cover her head.

⁷A man should not cover his head. He is the likeness and glory of God. But the woman is the glory of the man. ⁸The man did not come from the woman. The woman came from the man.

⁹Also, the man was not created for the woman. The woman was created for the man. ¹⁰That’s why a woman should have her head covered. It shows that she is under authority. She should also cover her head because of the angels.

¹¹But here is how things are for those who belong to the Lord. The woman is not independent of the man. And the man is not independent of the woman. ¹²The woman came from the man, and the man is born from the woman. But everything comes from God.

¹³You be the judge. Is it proper for a woman to pray to God without covering her head? ¹⁴Suppose a man has long hair. Doesn’t the very nature of things teach you that it is shameful? ¹⁵And suppose a woman has long hair. Doesn’t the very nature of things teach you that it is her glory? Long hair is given to her as a covering.

¹⁶If anyone wants to argue about that, we don’t have any other practice. And God’s churches don’t either.

The Lord’s Supper

¹⁷In the following matters, I don’t praise you. Your meetings do more harm than good.

¹⁸First, here is what people are telling me. When you come together as a church, you take sides. And in some ways I believe it. ¹⁹No doubt you need to take sides in order to show which of you God agrees with!

²⁰When you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat. ²¹As you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anyone else. One remains hungry and another gets drunk. ²²Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you think so little of God’s church that you shame those in it who have nothing? What should I say to you? Should I praise you for that? Certainly not!

²³I passed on to you what I received from the Lord. On the night the Lord Jesus was handed over to his enemies, he took bread. ²⁴When he had given thanks, he broke it. He said, “This is my body. It is given for you. Every time you eat it, do it in memory of me.” ²⁵In the same way, after supper he took the cup. He said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Every time you drink it, do it in memory of me.”

²⁶When you eat the bread and drink the cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.

²⁷So do not eat the bread or drink the cup of the Lord in a way that isn’t worthy of him. If you do, you will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.

²⁸A person should take a careful look at himself before he eats the bread and drinks from the cup. ²⁹Anyone who eats and drinks must recognize the body of the Lord. If he doesn’t, God will judge him for it. ³⁰That is why many of you are weak and sick. That is why a number of you have died.

³¹We should judge ourselves. Then we would not be found guilty. ³²When the Lord judges us, he corrects us. Then we will not be judged along with the rest of the world.

³³My brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, wait for each other. ³⁴Those who are hungry should eat at home. Then when you come together, you will not be judged.

When I come, I will give you more directions.

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