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1 Corinthians 10:9

WEBKJVBSBESVNKJVNASBNLT
We should not test Christ, as some of them did, and were killed by snakes.
1 Corinthians 10:9 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Let us not test Christ, as some of them tested, and perished by the serpents.
  • KJV Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
  • NKJV nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents;
  • NASB Nor are we to put the Lord to the test, as some of them did, and were killed by the snakes.
  • NLT Nor should we put Christ to the test, as some of them did and then died from snakebites.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Paul warns against testing Christ as Israel tested the LORD in the wilderness and died from serpents. Presuming on God's patience invites judgment.

Overview

Recalling Numbers 21, where Israel's grumbling brought venomous snakes, Paul strikingly names the one tested as 'Christ,' affirming Christ's presence with Israel in the wilderness. To 'test' God is to provoke him by doubting and demanding rather than trusting. The verse warns believers not to presume on grace, while the wider passage points to the cross, foreshadowed by the bronze serpent lifted up (John 3:14).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • Num 21:5–6and spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you led us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”
  • Ps 78:18They willfully tested God by demanding the food they craved.
  • Heb 3:8–11do not harden your hearts, as you did in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness,
  • Exod 17:2So the people contended with Moses, “Give us water to drink.” “Why do you contend with me?” Moses replied. “Why do you test the LORD?”
  • Deut 6:16Do not test the LORD your God as you tested Him at Massah.
  • Exod 17:7He named the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”
  • Ps 78:56But they tested and disobeyed God Most High, for they did not keep His decrees.
  • Exod 23:20–21Behold, I am sending an angel before you to protect you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared.
  • Ps 95:9where your fathers tested and tried Me, though they had seen My work.
  • Ps 106:14They craved intensely in the wilderness and tested God in the desert.
  • Heb 10:28–30Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)
BACKSLIDERSPRESUMPTIONSERPENT

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Christ at the center

Christ crucified is the wisdom and power of God; he is our Passover sacrificed for us, the firstfruits of resurrection, the foundation on which everything is built.

How 1 Corinthians 10:9 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.

Neitherμηδέlet us temptἐκπειράζωChristΧριστόςasκαθώςsomeτὶςof themαὐτόςalsoκαίtemptedπειράζωandκαίwere destroyedἀπόλλυμιofὑπόserpentsὄφις
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