1 Corinthians 9:25

And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
And	δὲ de	G1161	but · conjunction
man	πᾶς pas	G3956	all · adjective — nominative singular masculine
mastery	ἀγωνιζόμενος agōnizomenos	G75	to struggle · verb — present middle or passive deponent participle, nominative singular masculine
temperate	ἐγκρατεύεται· egkrateuetai	G1467	to exercise self-restraint (in diet and chastity) · verb — present middle or passive deponent indicative, 3rd person singular
things	πάντα panta	G3956	all · adjective — accusative plural neuter
Now	οὖν oun	G3767	(adverbially) certainly · conjunction
they	ἐκεῖνοι ekeinoi	G1565	that one (or (neuter) thing) · demonstrative pronoun — nominative plural masculine
to	ἵνα ina	G2443	compare G3588 (ὁ)) · conjunction
obtain	λάβωσιν, labōsin	G2983	while G138 (αἱρέομαι) is more violent · verb — second aorist active subjunctive, 3rd person plural
corruptible	φθαρτὸν phtharton	G5349	decayed · adjective — accusative singular masculine
crown	στέφανον stephanon	G4735	a chaplet (as a badge of royalty · noun — accusative singular masculine
but	δὲ de	G1161	but · conjunction
we	ἡμεῖς hēmeîs	G2249	we (only used when emphatic)
incorruptible	ἄφθαρτον. aphtharton	G862	undecaying (in essence or continuance) · adjective — accusative singular masculine

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 Timothy 2:5 And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.
Revelation 2:10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall…
1 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, where unto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many w…
2 Timothy 4:7-8 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
James 1:12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them…
Revelation 3:11 Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.
2 Peter 1:6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
1 Peter 1:4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

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

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 9:24–end

In these verses the apostle hints at the great encouragement he had to act in this manner. He had a glorious prize, an incorruptible crown, in view. Upon this head he compares himself to the racers and combatants in the Isthmian games, an allusion well known to the Corinthians, because they were celebrated in their neighbourhood: "Know you not that those who run in a race run all, but one obtaineth the prize? Co1 9:24. All run at your games, but only one gets the race and wins the crown." And here, I. He excites them to their duty: "So run that you may obtain. It is quite otherwise in the Christian race than in your races; only one wins the prize in them. You may all run so as to obtain. You…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 9:25

striveth--in wrestling: a still more severe contest than the foot race. is temperate--So Paul exercised self-denial, abstaining from claiming sustenance for the sake of the "reward," namely, to "gain the more" (Co1 9:18-19). corruptible--soon withering, as being only of fir leaves taken from the fir groves which surrounded the Isthmian race course or stadium. incorruptible-- (Pe1 1:4; Pe1 5:4; Rev 2:10). "Crown" here is not that of a king (which is expressed by a different Greek word, namely, "diadem"), but a wreath or garland.

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 9:25

Is temperate in all things - All those who contended in these exercises went through a long state and series of painful preparations. To this exact discipline Epictetus refers, cap. 35: Θελεις Ολυμπια νικησαι; Δει σ' ευτακτειν, αναγκοτροφειν, απεχεσθαι, πεμματων, γυμναζεσθαι προς αναγκην εν ὡρα τεταγμενη, εν καυματι, εν ψυχει, μη ψυχρον πινειν, μη οινον ὡς ετυχεν· ἁπλως, ὡς ιατρῳ, παραδεδωκεναι σεαυτον τῳ επιστατη· ειτα εις τον αγωνα παρερχεσθαι· κ. τ. λ. "Do you wish to gain the prize at the Olympic games? - Consider the requisite preparations and the consequences: you must observe a strict regimen; must live on food which you dislike; you must abstain from all delicacies; must exerci…

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The Church Fathers

No one is crowned except he strive lawfully.
— Basil of Caesarea, GIVE HEED TO THYSELF

You are an athlete. Come to grips with your opponent, not with your head but with your arms.
— Ambrose of Milan, The Six Days of Creation, Book 6, Chapter 1

No effort, no crown! Today there are people who place the widow above the virgin in terms of self-control, because the widow has rejected a pleasure which she once enjoyed.
— Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata Book 3

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

Agony — Contest; wrestling; severe struggling with pain and suffering. Anguish is the reflection on evil that is already past, while agony is a struggle with evil at the time present. It is only used in the…
Crown — (1.) Denotes the plate of gold in the front of the high priest’s mitre (Ex. 29:6; 39:30). The same Hebrew word so rendered (ne’zer) denotes the diadem worn by Saul in battle (2 Sam. 1:10), and also…
Ephesus — The capital of proconsular Asia, which was the western part of Asia Minor. It was colonized principally from Athens. In the time of the Romans it bore the title of “the first and greatest metropolis…
Games — (1.) Of children (Zech. 8:5; Matt. 11:16). The Jewish youth were also apparently instructed in the use of the bow and the sling (Judg. 20:16; 1 Chr. 12:2). (2.) Public games, such as were common…
Crown · FIGURATIVE — FIGURATIVE
Hygiene · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Reward Of Saints, The · Described as: An incorruptible crown — Described as: An incorruptible crown
Roman Empire, The · Allusions to grecian game adapted by: Training of combatants — Allusions to grecian game adapted by: Training of combatants
Self-Denial · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Temperance · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Warfare Of Saints · Is against: The flesh — Is against: The flesh

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 9:25

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 9:24–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 9:25

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 9:25

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

1 Corinthians 9:25

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 9:24–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 9:25

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 9:25

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 9:25

John Calvin on 1 Corinthians 9:23–end

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 1 Corinthians 9:24-27