You are to imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.
Parallel translations
- WEB Be imitators of me, even as I also am of Christ.
- KJV Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.
- NKJV Imitateme, just as I also imitate Christ.
- NASB Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.
- NLT And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.
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 urges the Corinthians to imitate him as he imitates Christ. Christlike self-denial for others is the standard to follow.
Overview
Concluding his teaching on liberty, Paul holds up his own example, which is itself patterned on Christ. Imitation flows down a chain: from Christ to Paul to the church. The verse roots Christian ethics in the example of Jesus, whose self-sacrificing love for others is the ultimate norm believers are called to reflect.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Phil 3:17Join one another in following my example, brothers, and carefully observe those who walk according to the pattern we set for you.
- 1 Th 1:6And you became imitators of us and of the Lord when you welcomed the message with the joy of the Holy Spirit, in spite of your great suffering.
- Eph 5:1–2Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children,
- 1 Cor 4:16Therefore I urge you to imitate me.
- Heb 6:12Then you will not be sluggish, but will imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.
- Phil 2:4–5Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
- 2 Th 3:9Not that we lack this right, but we wanted to offer ourselves as an example for you to imitate.
- Rom 15:2–3Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.
- 1 Cor 10:33as I also try to please everyone in all I do. For I am not seeking my own good, but the good of many, that they may be saved.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 11:1 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.