The Resurrection of the Messiah

1Now I’m making known to you, brothers, the gospel that I proclaimed to you, which you accepted, on which you have taken your stand, 2and by which you are also being saved if you hold firmly to the message I proclaimed to you—unless, of course, your faith was worthless.

3For I passed on to you the most important points thata I received: The Messiahb died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4he was buried, he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures—and is still alive!— 5and he was seen by Cephas,c and then by the Twelve. 6After that, he was seen by more than 500 brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died.d 7Next he was seen by James, then by all the apostles, 8and finally he was seen by me, as though I were born abnormally late.

9For I am the least of the apostles and not even fit to be called an apostle because I persecuted God’s church. 10But by God’s grace I am what I am, and his grace shown to me was not wasted. Instead, I worked harder than all the others—not I, of course, but God’s grace that was with me. 11So, whether it was I or the others, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

The Resurrection of the Dead

12Now if we preach that the Messiahe has been raised from the dead, how can some of you keep claiming there is no resurrection of the dead? 13If there is no resurrection of the dead, then the Messiahf has not been raised, 14and if the Messiahg has not been raised, then our message means nothing and yourh faith means nothing. 15In addition, we are found to be false witnesses about God because we testified on God’s behalf that he raised the Messiahi —whom he did not raise if in fact it is true that the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, then the Messiahj has not been raised, 17and if the Messiahk has not been raised, your faith is worthless and you are still imprisoned by your sins. 18Yes, even those who have diedl believingm in the Messiahn are lost. 19If we have set our hopes on the Messiaho in this life only, we deserve more pity than any other people.

20But at this moment the Messiahp stands risen from the dead, the first one offered in the harvestq of those who have died.r 21For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also came through a man. 22For as in Adam all die, so also in the Messiahs will all be made alive. 23However, this will happen to each person in the proper order: first the Messiah,t then those who belong to the Messiahu when he comes. 24Then the end will come, when after he has done away with every ruler and every authority and power, the Messiahv hands over the kingdom to God the Father. 25For he must rule until Godw puts all the Messiah’sx enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy to be done away with is death, 27for “Gody has put everything under his feet.”z Now when he says, “Everything has been put under him,” this clearly excludes the one who put everything under him. 28But when everything has been put under him, then the Son himself will also become subject to the one who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.

29Otherwise, what will those people do who are being baptized because of those who have died? If the dead are not raised at all, why are they being baptized because of them? 30And why in fact are we being endangered every hour? 31I face death every day! That is as certain, brothers,aa as it is that I am proud of you in the Messiah,bb Jesus our Lord. 32If I have fought with wild animals in Ephesus from merely human motives, what do I get out of it? If the dead are not raised,

“Let’s eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”cc

33Stop being deceived:

“Wicked friends lead to evil ends.”dd

34Come back to your senses as you should, and stop sinning! For some of you—I say this to your shame—don’t fully know God.

The Resurrection Body

35But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have when they come back?” 36You fool! The seed you plant does not come to life unless it dies, 37and what you plant is not the form that it will be, but a bare kernel, whether it is wheat or something else. 38But God gives the plantee the form he wants it to have, and to each kind of seed its own form. 39Not all flesh is the same.ff Humans have one kind of flesh,gg animals in general have another,hh birds have another,ii and fish have still another. 40There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the splendor of those in heaven is of one kind, and that of those on earth is of another. 41One kind of splendor belongs to the sun, anotherjj to the moon, and still anotherkk to the stars. In fact, one star differs from another star in splendor.

42This is how it will be at the resurrection of the dead. What is planted is decaying, what is raised cannot decay. 43The bodyll is planted in a state of dishonor but is raised in a state of splendor. It is planted in weakness but is raised in power. 44It is planted a physical body but is raised a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body.mm

45This, indeed, is what is written: “The first man, Adam, became a living being.”nn The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46The spiritual does not come first, but the physical does, and then comes the spiritual. 47The first man came from the dust of the earth; the second man came from heaven. 48Those who are made of the dust are like the man from the dust; those who are heavenly are like the man who is from heaven. 49Just as we have borne the likeness of the man who was made from dust, we willoo also bear the likeness of the man from heaven.

50Brothers, this is what I mean: Mortal bodiespp cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and what decays cannot inherit what does not decay. 51Let me tell you a secret. Not all of us will die,qq but all of us will be changed— 52in a moment, faster than an eye can blink, at the sound of the last trumpet. Indeed, that trumpetrr will sound, and then the dead will be raised never to decay, and we will be changed. 53For what is decaying must be clothed with what cannot decay, and what is dying must be clothed with what cannot die. 54Now, when what is decaying is clothed with what cannot decay, and what is dying is clothed with what cannot die, then the written word will be fulfilled: “Death has been swallowed up by victory!”ss

55“Where, O death, is your victory?

Where, O death, is your sting?”tt

56Now death’s stinger is sin, and sin’s power is the Law. 57But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus the Messiah!uu

58Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, unmovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that the work that you do for the Lord isn’t wasted.