Bible Study 1 Corinthians 15
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1 Corinthians 15 · WEB

The Resurrection of Christ and of the Dead

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Now I declare to you, brothers, the Good News which I preached to you, which also you received, in which you also stand,
2by which also you are saved, if you hold firmly the word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
3For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
5and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.
6Then he appeared to over five hundred brothers at once, most of whom remain until now, but some have also fallen asleep.
7Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles,
8and last of all, as to the child born at the wrong time, he appeared to me also.
9For I am the least of the apostles, who is not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the assembly of God.
10But by the grace of God I am what I am. His grace which was bestowed on me was not futile, but I worked more than all of them; yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
11Whether then it is I or they, so we preach, and so you believed.
12Now if Christ is preached, that he has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
13But if there is no resurrection of the dead, neither has Christ been raised.
14If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith also is in vain.
15Yes, we are found false witnesses of God, because we testified about God that he raised up Christ, whom he didn't raise up, if it is so that the dead are not raised.
16For if the dead aren't raised, neither has Christ been raised.
17If Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins.
18Then they also who are fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
19If we have only hoped in Christ in this life, we are of all men most pitiable.
20But now Christ has been raised from the dead. He became the first fruits of those who are asleep.
21For since death came by man, the resurrection of the dead also came by man.
22For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
23But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ's, at his coming.
24Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God, even the Father; when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
25For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
26The last enemy that will be abolished is death.
27For, "He put all things in subjection under his feet." But when he says, "All things are put in subjection," it is evident that he is excepted who subjected all things to him.
28When all things have been subjected to him, then the Son will also himself be subjected to him who subjected all things to him, that God may be all in all.
29Or else what will they do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead aren't raised at all, why then are they baptized for the dead?
30Why do we also stand in jeopardy every hour?
31I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.
32If I fought with animals at Ephesus for human purposes, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, then "let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die."
33Don't be deceived! "Evil companionships corrupt good morals."
34Wake up righteously, and don't sin, for some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
35But someone will say, "How are the dead raised?" and, "With what kind of body do they come?"
36You foolish one, that which you yourself sow is not made alive unless it dies.
37That which you sow, you don't sow the body that will be, but a bare grain, maybe of wheat, or of some other kind.
38But God gives it a body even as it pleased him, and to each seed a body of its own.
39All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, another flesh of animals, another of fish, and another of birds.
40There are also celestial bodies, and terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial differs from that of the terrestrial.
41There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory.
42So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown perishable; it is raised imperishable.
43It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.
44It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body and there is also a spiritual body.
45So also it is written, "The first man Adam became a living soul." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
46However that which is spiritual isn't first, but that which is natural, then that which is spiritual.
47The first man is of the earth, made of dust. The second man is the Lord from heaven.
48As is the one made of dust, such are those who are also made of dust; and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
49As we have borne the image of those made of dust, let's also bear the image of the heavenly.
50Now I say this, brothers, that flesh and blood can't inherit God's Kingdom; neither does the perishable inherit imperishable.
51Behold, I tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,
52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.
53For this perishable body must become imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.
54But when this perishable body will have become imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then what is written will happen: "Death is swallowed up in victory."
55"Death, where is your sting? Hades, where is your victory?"
56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
57But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord's work, because you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
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Summary

Paul reminds the Corinthians of the gospel he preached: Christ died for our sins according to Scripture, was buried, raised on the third day, and appeared to Peter, the Twelve, more than five hundred at once, James, all the apostles, and finally to Paul himself. Some at Corinth deny resurrection of the dead; Paul reasons that if there is no such resurrection, Christ wasn't raised, the gospel is empty, faith is futile, the dead are lost, and Christians are the most pitiable people on earth. But Christ has been raised, the firstfruits — and as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive, each in order, until at the end he hands the kingdom to the Father and death itself is destroyed. Paul addresses the "what kind of body?" question with the seed-and-plant analogy: the body is sown perishable but raised imperishable, sown natural but raised spiritual; we who have borne the image of the dust will bear the image of the heavenly Man. At the last trumpet, the dead will rise imperishable and the living will be changed in a moment. Death is swallowed up in victory through our Lord Jesus Christ — so be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing your labor is not in vain.

Themes

  • The historical resurrection of Christ
  • If Christ is not raised, nothing in Christianity stands
  • Adam and Christ — death's reign and life's victory
  • The resurrection body: imperishable, glorious, powerful
  • Death defeated, labor not in vain

Key verses

  • 1 Corinthians 15:14 — “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith also is in vain.”
  • 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 — “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”
  • 1 Corinthians 15:55-57 — “Death, where is your sting?... Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
  • 1 Corinthians 15:58 — “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord's work, because you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”

Context & background

Written c. AD 54-55 from Ephesus. The Greco-Roman world generally regarded bodily resurrection as undesirable — Plato saw the body as the soul's prison; immortality of soul was acceptable, but resurrection of the body sounded barbaric. Some Corinthians may have spiritualized resurrection ("we are already raised in the spirit, why would we want a body?") or simply denied any afterlife (some Greek influences). Paul refuses the compromise — without bodily resurrection, the gospel collapses. Verses 3-7 are widely recognized as one of the earliest Christian creeds, predating Paul's letter by years — possibly going back to within five years of Jesus' death. The named appearances and the over 500 witnesses constitute Paul's careful historical argument: many were still alive to be questioned. "Baptized for the dead" (v. 29) is notoriously obscure — most interpreters take it as some practice at Corinth Paul mentions in passing without endorsing. "Fighting wild beasts at Ephesus" (v. 32) is likely metaphorical for severe opposition. The quotations in vv. 54-55 are Isaiah 25:8 and Hosea 13:14.

Cross-references

  • 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 — Parallel teaching on the resurrection at Christ's coming.
  • Acts 17:31-32 — Paul's preaching of the resurrection in Athens, where it was mocked.
  • Hosea 13:14 — "Death, where are your plagues?" — quoted in v. 55.
  • Isaiah 25:8 — "He has swallowed up death forever" — quoted in v. 54.
  • Romans 5:12-21 — Adam and Christ — parallel theology.

Check your reading

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  1. Observe

    In Paul's list of resurrection appearances (vv. 5-8), to whom does Christ appear last?

  2. Observe

    How does Paul describe the transformation of the resurrection body in verse 42-44, using four contrasting pairs?

  3. Interpret

    Paul says that "as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive" (v. 22). What is the theological structure Paul is using here, and what does it say about the resurrection?

  4. Interpret

    Paul says "the last enemy that will be abolished is death" (v. 26). What does framing death as an "enemy" to be "abolished" reveal about the Christian understanding of death?

  5. Apply

    Paul closes the chapter with "therefore... be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord's work, because you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord" (v. 58). How does the certainty of resurrection justify this call to costly, sustained work?

  6. Apply

    If death has truly lost its sting through Christ's resurrection (vv. 55-57), which specific fear in your life does that truth most directly challenge?

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