8. He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns.
9. God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
10. I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.
11. For some members of Chloe’s household have told me about your quarrels, my dear brothers and sisters.
12. Some of you are saying, “I am a follower of Paul.” Others are saying, “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Peter,” or “I follow only Christ.”
13. Has Christ been divided into factions? Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not!
14. I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,
15. for now no one can say they were baptized in my name.
16. (Oh yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I don’t remember baptizing anyone else.)
17. For Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to preach the Good News—and not with clever speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power.
18. The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.
19. As the Scriptures say,“I will destroy the wisdom of the wiseand discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”