1 COR 4:1 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT In this manner let a man regard us: as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.

UST I want people to think of us who proclaim the good news as those who serve the Messiah and who are in charge of proclaiming what God has now revealed to us.

BLB So let a man regard us as servants of Christ and stewards of God's mysteries.

AICNT So let men consider us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.

OEB Let people look on us as Christ’s servants, and as stewards of the hidden truths of God.

WEBBE So let a man think of us as Christ’s servants and stewards of God’s mysteries.

WMBB So let a man think of us as Messiah’s servants and stewards of God’s mysteries.

NET One should think about us this way – as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.

LSV Let a man so reckon us as officers of Christ, and stewards of the secrets of God,

FBV So think of us as Christ's servants given the responsibility for “the mysteries of God.”[fn]

4:1 Again, in the NT mysteries are the revealed truths of God.

TCNT People ought to regard us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.

T4T So, people ought to consider us apostles (OR, Apollos and me) to be merely servants of Christ. God has given to us (exc) the work of telling others the message that God has now revealed to us.

LEB Thus let a person consider us as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries.

BBE Let us be judged as servants of Christ, and as those who are responsible for the secret things of God.

Moff This is how you are to look upon us, as servants of Christ and stewards of God's secret truths.

Wymth As for us Apostles, let any one take this view of us—we are Christ's officers, and stewards of God's secret truths.

ASV Let a man so account of us, as of ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.

DRA Let a man so account of us as of the ministers of Christ, and the dispensers of the mysteries of God.

YLT Let a man so reckon us as officers of Christ, and stewards of the secrets of God,

Drby Let a man so account of us as servants of Christ, and stewards of [the] mysteries of [fn]God.

4.1 Elohim

RV Let a man so account of us, as of ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.

SLT So let a man reckon us, as servants of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.

Wbstr Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.

KJB-1769 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.

KJB-1611 ¶ Let a man so account of vs, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps Let a man so esteeme of vs, as the ministers of Christe, and disposers of the secretes of God.
(Let a man so esteem of us, as the ministers of Christ, and disposers of the secrets of God.)

Gnva Let a man so thinke of vs, as of the ministers of Christ, and disposers of the secrets of God:
(Let a man so think of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and disposers of the secrets of God: )

Cvdl Let euery man this wyse esteme vs, euen for the mynisters of Christ, and stewardes of the secretes of God.
(Let every man this wise esteme us, even for the ministers of Christ, and stewardes of the secrets of God.)

TNT Let men this wyse esteme vs even as the ministers of Christ and disposers of the secretes of God.
(Let men this wise esteme us even as the ministers of Christ and disposers of the secrets of God. )

Wycl So a man gesse vs, as mynystris of Crist, and dispenderis of the mynysteries of God.
(So a man gesse us, as ministers of Christ, and dispenderis of the ministeries of God.)

Luth Dafür halte uns jedermann, nämlich für Christi Diener und Haushalter über Gottes Geheimnisse.
(For_that hold/stop us/to_us/ourselves anyone, namely for/in_favour_of Christi servant and household above God’s secret/mysteryse.)

ClVg Sic nos existimet homo ut ministros Christi, et dispensatores mysteriorum Dei.[fn]
(So us existimet human as ministers Christi, and dispensatores mysteryrum of_God. )

4.1 Sic nos. Hactenus de gloria pseudo: hic de suo contemptu agit. Sic nos. Hoc ideo ait Apostolus, quia de eo minus sentiebant; sed sic homo sentiat, ut Deus qui eum elegit. Et dispensatores. AUG. Non solum boni, sed etiam mali dispensatores sunt, etc., usque ad est, illius esse participem.

4.1 So us. Hactenus from/about glory pseudo: this/here from/about his_own contemptu acts. So us. This therefore/for_that_reason he_said Apostolus, because from/about by_him minus sentiebant; but so human feel, as God who/which him chose. And dispensatores. AUG. Not/No only good, but also evil dispensatores are, etc., until to it_is, of_that to_be participem.

UGNT οὕτως ἡμᾶς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος ὡς ὑπηρέτας Χριστοῦ, καὶ οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων Θεοῦ.
(houtōs haʸmas logizesthō anthrōpos hōs hupaʸretas Ⱪristou, kai oikonomous mustaʸriōn Theou.)

SBL-GNT Οὕτως ἡμᾶς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος ὡς ὑπηρέτας Χριστοῦ καὶ οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων θεοῦ.
(Houtōs haʸmas logizesthō anthrōpos hōs hupaʸretas Ⱪristou kai oikonomous mustaʸriōn theou.)

RP-GNT Οὕτως ἡμᾶς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος, ὡς ὑπηρέτας χριστοῦ καὶ οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων θεοῦ.
(Houtōs haʸmas logizesthō anthrōpos, hōs hupaʸretas ⱪristou kai oikonomous mustaʸriōn theou.)

TC-GNT Οὕτως ἡμᾶς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος, ὡς ὑπηρέτας Χριστοῦ καὶ οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων Θεοῦ.
(Houtōs haʸmas logizesthō anthrōpos, hōs hupaʸretas Ⱪristou kai oikonomous mustaʸriōn Theou. )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 4:1–21: The Corinthians should respect Paul as a servant of Christ

Paul continued to talk about how the Corinthian believers should think about their Christian leaders, especially himself. He said that Christian leaders are servants of Christ and should be judged only by Christ. Some Corinthian believers were saying that they did not have to listen to Paul’s teaching. Paul encouraged the Corinthians to respect and obey him as their spiritual father.

Other possible section headings include:

Paul encouraged the Corinthians to respect him and Apollos

Paul and Apollos deserved respect as Christ’s servants

Paragraph 4:1–5

Paul explained that he was a worker whom Christ had sent to teach and work for him. Christ alone was the one to decide whether or not Paul had done his work well.

4:1a

So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ

¶ As for us^(excl) teachers/evangelists, you should think about us^(excl) like this: We^(excl) are Christ’s helpers/servants,
¶ You should consider us^(excl) Christian workers to be merely people who serve Christ.

So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ: There are two ways of understanding the Greek word that the BSB translates So then:

It means “in this way” and refers forward. For example:
Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ… (NRSV) (KJV, RSV, NASB, NET)
It refers back and introduces a conclusion to what Paul had just said. For example:
So look at Apollos and me as mere servants of Christ (NLT) (BSB, NIV, NLT)

Many English versions do not explicitly translate this conjunction. In English this would be a natural way of translating interpretation (1) rather than interpretation (2). It is therefore recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

men ought to regard us as servants of Christ: This verse part indicates the way in which believers should view or think about Christian workers. Other ways to translate this include:

People should think of us as servants of Christ (NCV)

People should consider us to be Christ’s servants.

This functions as a command to the Corinthians to regard Christian workers as servants of Christ. In some languages it may be natural to translate this command using the second person (“you”). For example:

You^(plur) should regard us as Christ’s servants.

Think of us as servants of Christ. (CEV)

us: The pronoun us here refers to Paul and his fellow workers. If you need to make this explicit, you could say:

As for us^(excl) teachers/evangelists, here is how you should think about us^(excl).

servants of Christ: The Greek word that the BSB translates as servants refers to people who work for others. The phrase servants of Christ refers to people who work for Christ. They belong to him and serve him. The Greek word for servants is different from the one in 3:5, but the meaning is similar. You may translate this using the same word or expression as you used in 3:5.

4:1b

and stewards of the mysteries of God.

and God has made us^(excl) guardians/trustees of the things/matters that previously he did not make known to anyone.
God has sent us^(excl) to tell people his plans/teachings that he has never told anyone before.

stewards of the mysteries of God: This phrase indicates that Paul and his fellow workers had been given responsibility for God’s hidden truths. Their job was to proclaim and teach these truths correctly. In many languages it may be necessary to make this explicit:

stewards entrusted with proclaiming/declaring the mysteries of God

stewards: The Greek word that the BSB translates as stewards is more literally “household-managers, administrators.”The Greek word oikonomoi means “stewards, house-managers, administrators.” In Bible times a rich man with many servants and much land usually had one special servant who was called a steward. He was the one in charge of the household and fields. His job was to oversee the other servants as they did the work. By using that word here, Paul meant that Christ had made him and his fellow workers responsible for telling God’s people all about the good things God had prepared for them and for teaching God’s people to follow his ways. This is a metaphor. Paul was indicating that he and his fellow workers were like managers of someone’s important possessions. Christ had given them an important work to do for God and they were responsible to him for doing it faithfully.

There are several ways of translating this metaphor:

keep the metaphor and use a word referring to someone who manages or organizes another person’s goods or wealth. For example:
we^(excl) are managers/trustees
as a simile. For example:
we^(excl) are like administrators/stewards
explain the meaning of the metaphor. Some possible ways to explain the metaphor include:
we^(excl) have been given the responsibility/duty
God has put us^(excl) in charge of

the mysteries of God: For the Greek word that the BSB translates as mysteries, see the notes on 2:1c and 2:7a. The mysteries of God are the truths that God did not reveal clearly to anyone in the past, but that he has now revealed to all believers. God had not told anyone these mysteries until Christ came to earth, and now he has sent the apostles to tell everyone. Here is another way to translate this:

God’s secret truths (GNT)

General Comment on 4:1a-b

In the Greek text these verse parts are connected with a conjunction, which the BSB translates literally as “and.” This conjunction here introduces a further explanation of what Paul had said about himself and other Christian workers. They were servants in the sense that they were stewards of God’s mysteries. It was their task or duty to preach God’s secret truths. There are several other ways to translate this connection:

use a relative pronoun such as “who”:
Think of us as servants of Christ who have been given the work of explaining God’s mysterious ways (CEV)
You should think of us as Christ’s servants, who have been put in charge of God’s secret truths. (GNT)
omit the conjunction and use a comma:
People should think of us as Christ’s servants, stewards entrusted with the mysteries of God. (NJB)
People should think of us as servants of Christ, the ones God has trusted with his secrets. (NCV)
start a new sentence:
You should consider us Christian workers to be merely people who serve Christ. God has given us the responsibility/duty of proclaiming truths he has not previously revealed.

Connect 4:1a and b in whichever way is natural in your language.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / explicitinfo

οὕτως ἡμᾶς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος ὡς

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὕτως ἡμάς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος ὡς ὑπηρέτας Χριστοῦ καί οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων Θεοῦ)

If the form In this manner let a man regard us: as would be redundant in your language, you could express the idea without the redundant words. Alternate translation: [Let a man regard us as]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / imperative3p

ἡμᾶς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὕτως ἡμάς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος ὡς ὑπηρέτας Χριστοῦ καί οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων Θεοῦ)

Here Paul uses a third-person imperative. If you have third-person imperatives in your language, you could use one here. If you do not have third-person imperatives, you could express the idea using a word such as “should.” Alternate translation: [a man should regard us]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / gendernotations

ἄνθρωπος

˓a˒_person

Although man is masculine, Paul is using it to refer to anyone, whether man or woman. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express man with a non gendered word or refer to both genders. Alternate translation: [man or woman] or [human]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

ἄνθρωπος

˓a˒_person

Paul uses the word man to speak of people in general, not one specific person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express man with a form that indicates people in general in your language. Alternate translation: [everybody] or [any person]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / exclusive

ἡμᾶς

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὕτως ἡμάς λογιζέσθω ἄνθρωπος ὡς ὑπηρέτας Χριστοῦ καί οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων Θεοῦ)

Here, us refers to Paul, Apollos, and others who proclaim the gospel. It does not include the Corinthians.

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

οἰκονόμους μυστηρίων Θεοῦ

managers ˱of˲_˓the˒_mysteries ˱of˲_God

Here Paul uses the possessive form to describe stewards who are in charge of the mysteries of God. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the idea behind this form by using a verb such as “manage” or “oversee.” Alternate translation: [stewards who manage the mysteries of God] or [stewards who oversee the mysteries of God]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

μυστηρίων Θεοῦ

˱of˲_˓the˒_mysteries ˱of˲_God

Here Paul uses the possessive form to describe mysteries that are: (1) revealed by God. Alternate translation: [of the mysteries given by God] or [of the mysteries from God] (2) about God. Alternate translation: [of the mysteries about God] or [of the mysteries concerning God]

Parallel 1 COR 4:1

Section 4:1–21: The Corinthians should respect Paul as a servant of Christ

Paragraph 4:1–5

4:1a

4:1b

General Comment on 4:1a-b

Parallel 1 COR 4:1