1 Corinthians 9:1

1 Corinthians 9:1

(KJV)   Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?

(1611 KJV) Am I not an Apostle? am I not free? haue I not seene Iesus Christ our Lord? Are not you my worke in the Lord?

(1587 Geneva Bible) Am I not an Apostle? am I not free? haue I not seene Iesus Christ our Lord? are ye not my worke in the Lord?

(1568 Bishops Bible) Am I not an Apostle? am I not free? haue I not seene Iesus Christe our Lord: Are ye not my worke in the Lorde?

(1539 Great Bible) Am I not an Apostle? am I not fre? haue I not sene Iesus Christ oure Lorde?*

(1535 Coverdale Bible) Am I not an Apostle? Am I not fre? Haue I not sene Iesus Christ oure LORDE?*

(1526 Tyndale) Am I not an Apostle? am I not fre? have I not sene Iesus Christ oure lorde?*

 

*”are not ye my work in the Lord?” begins verse two in the Great Bible, Coverdale Bible, and Tyndale.  The translators of the Bishops Bible placed it back in verse one.  Keep in mind that the verse divisions are not inspired as the text is so they thought it added more clarity to verse one since verse one is a series of questions.

 

Counterfeit Versions

(1881 RV) Am I not free? am I not an apostle? have I not seen Jesus our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?

(1901 ASV) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not ye my work in the Lord?

(AMP) Am I not free [unrestrained and exempt from any obligation]? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our [risen] Lord [in person]? Are you not [the result and proof of] my work in the Lord?

(CEB) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Haven’t I seen Jesus our Lord? Aren’t you my work in the Lord?

(CEV) I am free. I am an apostle. I have seen the Lord Jesus and have led you to have faith in him.

(CSB) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition) Am not I free? Am not I an apostle? Have not I seen Christ Jesus our Lord? Are not you my work in the Lord?

(ERV) I am a free man. I am an apostle. I have seen Jesus our Lord. You people are an example of my work in the Lord.

(ESV) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord?

(GNB) Am I not a free man? Am I not an apostle? Haven't I seen Jesus our Lord? And aren't you the result of my work for the Lord?

(HCSB) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(ISV) I am free, am I not? I am an apostle, am I not? I have seen Jesus our Lord, haven’t I? You are the result of my work in the Lord, aren’t you?

(JB PHILLIPS) Is there any doubt that I am a genuine messenger, any doubt that I am a free man? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord with my own eyes? Are not you yourselves samples of my work for the Lord?

(LEB) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(LB) I am an apostle, God’s messenger, responsible to no mere man. I am one who has actually seen Jesus our Lord with my own eyes. And your changed lives are the result of my hard work for him.

(THE MESSAGE)And don’t tell me that I have no authority to write like this. I’m perfectly free to do this—isn’t that obvious? Haven’t I been given a job to do? Wasn’t I commissioned to this work in a face-to-face meeting with Jesus, our Master? Aren’t you yourselves proof of the good work that I’ve done for the Master?

(NABRE) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(NASV) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(NCV) I am a free man. I am an apostle. I have seen Jesus our Lord. You people are all an example of my work in the Lord.

(NET) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(NIRV) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Haven’t I seen Jesus our Lord? Aren’t you the result of my work for the Lord?

(NIV) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord?

(NLV) Am I not a missionary? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not Christians because of the work I have done for the Lord?

(NLT) Am I not as free as anyone else? Am I not an apostle? Haven’t I seen Jesus our Lord with my own eyes? Isn’t it because of my work that you belong to the Lord?

(NRSV) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(RSV) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord?

(TLV) Am I not free? Am I not an emissary? Have I not seen Yeshua our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

(VOICE) Am I not truly free? Am I not an emissary of the Liberating King? Have I not personally encountered Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work, my mission in the Lord?

(NWT-Jehovah’s Witnesses) Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

 

Textus Receptus – Traditional Text

ουκ ειμι αποστολος ουκ ειμι ελευθερος ουχι ιησουν χριστον τον κυριον ημων εωρακα ου το εργον μου υμεις εστε εν κυριω

 

Hort-Westcott – Critical Text

ουκ ειμι ελευθερος ουκ ειμι αποστολος ουχι ιησουν τον κυριον ημων εορακα ου το εργον μου υμεις εστε εν κυριω

 

Corrupted Manuscripts

This verse is corrupted in the following manuscripts:

Aleph 01 - Sinaiticus - Nineteenth Century Counterfeit
A 02 - Alexandrinus - Fifth century

B 03 - Vaticanus - Fourth century

 

Manuscripts Which Agree With The Textus Receptus For This Verse

Byzantine Text (450-1450 A.D.)

Stephanus (1550 A.D.)

D 06 - Paris: Claromontanus - Sixth century

K 018 - Ninth century

L 020 - Ninth century

P 025 - Ninth century

 

Published Critical Greek Texts with Corruptions

Omits “Christ” after “Jesus”

Lachmann, Karl - 1842

Tischendorf, Constantine - 1869

Tregelles, Samuel - 1857

Alford, Henry - 1849 revised in 1871

Westcott and Hort - 1881

Nestle - 1927 as revised in seventeenth edition in 1941

Nestle-Aland - 1979 - Twenty Sixth Edition

Nestle-Aland - 1993 - Twenty Seventh Edition

Nestle-Aland - 2012 - Twenty Eighth Edition

United Bible Societies - 1983 - Fourth Edition

Weiss, Bernhard - 1894

Von Soden, Freiherr - 1902

 

Affected Teaching

Here is another Gnostic attack on the Lord Jesus Christ.  The Gnostics did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah nor was He God manifest in the flesh.  What the Gnostics have done is to separate the name of the Lord Jesus from His divine title of Christ.  This is why the modern versions have kept the truncated form of the divine name because the modern versions espouse Gnosticism.  Gnosticism was alive and well even in the first century.  If you use a modern version you will come across the following.  I will use the ESV as an example of the heretical nature of the modern versions:

 

Acts 15:11 (KJV)   But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.

Acts 15:11 (ESV) But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”

 

In Acts 15:11, the ESV truncates the full name of the Lord Jesus Christ to “Lord Jesus”

 

Romans 16:18 (KJV)   For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.

Romans 16:18 (ESV) For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

 

In Romans 16:18, the ESV truncates the full name of the Lord Jesus Christ to “Lord Christ.” 

 

2 Timothy 4:22 (KJV) The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.

2 Timothy 4:22 (ESV) The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.

 

In 2 Timothy 4:22, the ESV truncates the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to “Lord” completely leaving out His name.

 

1 Timothy 1:1 (KJV) Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;

1 Timothy 1:1 (ESV) Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,

 

In 1 Timothy 1:1, the ESV truncates the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to “Christ Jesus” omitting “Lord.”  So those who use the modern versions are using Gnostic versions and perpetuating the Gnostic heresies of the first and second century.  If you say you love the Lord Jesus Christ, why would you use a counterfeit version that denigrates Him?

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