1 Corinthians 2:5

That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

King James Version · Read in your translation · Open the Explore console

Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
That	ἵνα ina	G2443	compare G3588 (ὁ)) · conjunction
your	ὑμῶν hymōn	G5216	of (from or concerning) you
faith	πίστις pistis	G4102	persuasion · noun — nominative singular feminine
not	μὴ mē	G3361	(adverb) not · particle — negative
stand	ὦ ō	G5600	(may
in	ἐν en	G1722	"in · preposition
wisdom	σοφίᾳ sophia	G4678	wisdom (higher or lower · noun — dative singular feminine
men	ἀνθρώπων anthrōpōn	G444	from G3700 (ὀπτάνομαι)) · noun — genitive plural masculine
but	ἀλλ᾽ all᾽	G235	properly · conjunction
in	ἐν en	G1722	"in · preposition
power	δυνάμει dunamei	G1411	force (literally or figuratively) · noun — dative singular feminine
God	θεοῦ.¶ theou	G2316	figuratively · noun — genitive singular masculine, a title

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

2 Corinthians 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
2 Corinthians 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory…
2 Corinthians 6:7 By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
1 Corinthians 1:17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effec…
Acts 16:14 And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, t…
1 Corinthians 3:6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 2:1-5

In this passage the apostle pursues his design, and reminds the Corinthians how he acted when he first preached the gospel among them. I. As to the matter or subject he tell us (Co1 2:2), He determined to know nothing among them but Jesus Christ and him crucified - to make a show of no other knowledge than this, to preach nothing, to discover the knowledge of nothing, but Jesus Christ, and him crucified. Note, Christ, in his person and offices, is the sum and substance of the gospel, and ought to be the great subject of a gospel minister's preaching. His business is to display the banner of the cross, and invite people under it. Any one that heard Paul preach found him to harp so continually…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 2:5

stand in . . . wisdom of men--rest on it, owe its origin and continuance to it.

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 2:5

That your faith should not stand - That the illumination of your souls and your conversion to God might appear to have nothing human in it: your belief, therefore, of the truths which have been proposed to you is founded, not in human wisdom, but in Divine power: human wisdom was not employed; and human power, if it had been employed, could not have produced the change.

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 2:5

That your faith should not stand,.... "Or be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God". The Spirit of God directed him, and he under his influence chose, and by his assistance pursued this way of preaching, with this view, and for this reason, that faith in Christ, and in the doctrines of his Gospel, which comes by hearing, might not be attributed to the force of human eloquence and oratory; or stand upon so sandy a foundation, as that which might, if that was the case, be puffed away by a superior flow and force of words; but that it might be ascribed, as it ought to be, to almighty power, stand in it, be supported by it, and at last be finished and fulfilled with it.

The Church Fathers

Human wisdom is temporal. The power of God is eternal.
— Pelagius, COMMENTARY ON THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS 2

Wherefore also the apostle exhorts, "that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men," who profess to persuade, "but in the power of God," which alone without proofs, by mere faith, is able to save.
— Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata Book 5

Let no man therefore glory on account of pre-eminence in human thought. For it is written well in Jeremiah, "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, and let not the mighty man glory in his might, and let not the rich man glory in his riches: but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth that I am the Lord, that executeth mercy and judgment and righteousness upon the earth: for in these things is my delight, saith the Lord." "That we should trust not in ourselves, but in God who raiseth the dead," says the apostle, "who delivered us from so great a death, that our faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." "For the spiritual man judgeth all things, but he himself is judged of no man."
— Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata Book 1

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Faith · 10:20;14:32;26:3;30:15;57:13; — 10:20;14:32;26:3;30:15;57:13;
Philosophy · Employment of, was not Paul’s method of preaching the gospel — Employment of, was not Paul’s method of preaching the gospel
Power Of God, The · The faith of saints stands in — The faith of saints stands in
Preaching · UNCLASSIFIED SCRIPTURES RELATING TO — UNCLASSIFIED SCRIPTURES RELATING TO
Reasoning · The gospel — The gospel

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

1 Corinthians 2:5

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 2:1-5

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 2:5

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 2:5

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 2:5

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

1 Corinthians 2:5

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 2:1-5

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 2:5

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 2:5

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 2:5

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on 1 Corinthians 2:3-5

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 1 Corinthians 2:3-4