12. Now I mean this, that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” “I follow Kefa,” and, “I follow Messiah.”
13. Is Messiah divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you immersed into the name of Paul?
14. I thank God that I immersed none of you, except Crispus and Gaius,
15. so that no one should say that I had immersed you into my own name.
16. (I also immersed the household of Stephanas; besides them, I don’t know whether I immersed any other.)
17. For Messiah sent me not to immerse, but to proclaim the Good News—not in wisdom of words, so that the cross of Messiah wouldn’t be made void.
18. For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are dying, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
19. For it is written,“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,I will bring the discernment of the discerning to nothing.”
20. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the Torah scholar of this world? Hasn’t God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
21. For seeing that in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom didn’t know God, it was God’s good pleasure through the foolishness of the proclaiming to save those who believe.
22. For Jews ask for signs, Greeks seek after wisdom,
23. but we proclaim Messiah crucified; a stumbling block to Jews, and foolishness to Greeks,
24. but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Messiah is the power of God and the wisdom of God.
25. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
26. For you see your calling, brothers, that not many are wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, and not many noble;
27. but God chose the foolish things of the world that he might put to shame those who are wise. God chose the weak things of the world, that he might put to shame the things that are strong;