1 Corinthians 1:19,27 - Compare All Versions

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The Message that points to Christ on the Cross seems like sheer silliness to those hellbent on destruction, but for those on the way of salvation it makes perfect sense. This is the way God works, and most powerfully as it turns out. It’s written, I’ll turn conventional wisdom on its head, I’ll expose so-called experts as shams. So where can you find someone truly wise, truly educated, truly intelligent in this day and age? Hasn’t God exposed it all as pretentious nonsense? Since the world in all its fancy wisdom never had a clue when it came to knowing God, God in his wisdom took delight in using what the world considered stupid—preaching, of all things!—to bring those who trust him into the way of salvation.

Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don’t see many of “the brightest and the best” among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these “nobodies” to expose the hollow pretensions of the “somebodies”? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That’s why we have the saying, “If you’re going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God.”

For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.

but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty

For it is written, “I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER I WILL SET ASIDE.”

but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong

It is written in the Scriptures: “I will cause the wise to lose their wisdom; I will make the wise unable to understand.”

But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and he chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.

For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And the discernment of the discerning will I bring to nought.

but God chose the foolish things of the world, that he might put to shame them that are wise; and God chose the weak things of the world, that he might put to shame the things that are strong

For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”

But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.

For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”

But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty

For it is written and forever remains written, “I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE [the philosophy of the philosophers], AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER [who do not know Me] I WILL NULLIFY.” [Is 29:14]

But God has selected [for His purpose] the foolish things of the world to shame the wise [revealing their ignorance], and God has selected [for His purpose] the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong [revealing their frailty].

As the Scriptures say, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”

Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.

For it is written: I will dismantle the wisdom of the wise and I will invalidate the intelligence of the scholars.

But God chose those whom the world considers foolish to shame those who think they are wise, and God chose the puny and powerless to shame the high and mighty.

For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”

But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong