I Corinthians 15:33 KJB - ”Be not deceived: EVIL COMMUNICATIONS CORRUPT GOOD MANNERS."
I Corinthians 15:33 KJB - ”Be not deceived: EVIL COMMUNICATIONS CORRUPT GOOD MANNERS."
NKJV 1982 - "Do not be deceived. EVIL COMPANY corrupts good HABITS." NIV, ESV, RSV, NASB, NET, Holman etc.
Jehovah Witness New World Translation - “Do not be misled. BAD ASSOCIATIONS SPOIL USEFUL HABITS.”
The issue is WRONG DOCTRINE that leads to WRONG LIVING. Not “wrong living that leads to wrong living”.
Paul has been talking about the doctrine of the resurrection, and how our whole faith is made vain if Christ did not rise from the dead.
He specifically states this in verse 12 "HOW SAY SOME AMONG YOU THAT THERE IS NO RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD?”
Imagine that! Some "Christians" were saying and teaching others that there is no such thing as the resurrection. This is the context of Paul's statement in verse 33 - “evil communications”. It is talking about what people were SAYING, and thereby teaching false doctrine; NOT "bad company" or loose living.
The word is homiliai ('ομιλιαι) - plural, not singular (as the fake bibles have it), and it comes from the verb to speak, to talk, to commune. It pertains to what is being said; thus communications.
We get the word homily from this Greek word. A homily is “a sermon, especially one about something in the Bible.” - Webster’s New World Dictionary.
The verb is homileoo and is found four times in the New Testament and it always has to do with SPEECH.
In Luke 24:14 it is translated as "talked" - "and they TALKED together of all these things which had happened."
In Luke 24:15 "while they COMMUNED"
Acts 20:11 "and TALKED a long while, even till break of day"
and in Acts 24:26 "wherefore he sent for him the oftener, and COMMUNED with him."
Bibles that Got It Right
The Wycliffe bible 1395 says "evil speeches destroy good conduct".
Tyndale 1525 renders 1 Cor. 15:33 as "malicious speakings corrupt good manners".
The Great Bible of 1540 says: "1 Cor. 15:33 Be not ye deceaued: euell wordes corrupte good maners."
Matthew's Bible of 1549 has: "1 Cor. 15:33 Be not deceiued: malicious speakinges corrupte good maners."
The Bishop's Bible 1568 has: "evil words corrupt good manners."
While the Geneva Bible 1587 and Beza's New Testament 1599 both say: "evil speakings corrupt good manners."
"EVIL COMMUNICATIONS CORRUPT GOOD MANNERS"
Agreeing with the King James Bible "evil communications corrupt good manners" are Coverdale 1535, the previous Catholic Douay-Rheims 1582 - "Evil communications corrupt good manners.", the Bill Bible 1671, Wesley's N.T. 1755, Thomas Haweis N.T. 1795 - "evil conversations corrupt good manners.", The Revised Translation 1815, Webster's Bible 1833, The Living Oracles 1835, The Pickering N.T. 1840, The Longman Version 1841, The Hewett N.T. 1850, The Commonly Received Version 1851, The Boothroyd Bible 1853, The Revised New Testament 1862, Anderson N.T. 1866, The Noyes N.T. 1869, The Alford N.T. 1870 - "Evil communications corrupt good manners.", The Revised English Bible 1877, The Sharpe Bible 1883, The Dillard N.T. 1885, Darby 1890, Young's 1898, Rotherham's Emphasized Bible 1902, the Douay Version 1950, The Word of Yah 1993, the Bond Slave Version 2009, the Hebraic Transliteration Scripture 2010 - "evil communications corrupt good manners.", The Interlinear Hebrew-Greek Scriptures 2011 (Mebust)
Lamsa’s 1933 translation of the Syriac Peshitta also reads like the KJB saying: “Do not be deceived. EVIL COMMUNICATIONS CORRUPT GOOD MANNERS.”
There are some different translations that still maintain the correct idea that it is WORDS or WHAT IS SPOKEN (false teachings) that corrupt the way we live. Here are a few of them -
Mace N.T. 1745 - “vicious conversation corrupts good morals."
The Worsley Version 1770 - “bad conversations corrupt good morals.”
The Thomson Bible 1808 - “good morals are debauched by talk profane.”
The Smith Bible 1876 - “Evil intercourses corrupt good habits.”
God’s First Truth 1999 - “malicious speakings corrupt good manners.”
Online Interlinear 2010 (André de Mol) - “Evil conversations are corrupting kind characters.”
The Spanish Reina Valera 1909, 1960, 1995, and the 2004 Reina Valera Gomez all agree with the Greek and the KJB reading: - "las malas conversaciones corrompen las buenas costumbres." = "Evil conversations corrupt good manners"
and the Portuguese de Almeida 1681 and the recent Portuguese Bíblia Sagrada - "as más conversações corrompem os bons costumes."
Bogus “Bibles” that Miss the Whole Point!
However the NKJV, NASB, and NIV, as well as many other modern versions like the RSV, ESV, ISV, NET and the Catholic St. Joseph New American bible 1970, and the New Jerusalem bible 1985 have messed up what this verse actually says, and have replaced it with a popular proverb: "BAD COMPANY CORRUPTS GOOD MORALS.”
The Catholic St. Joseph New American bible 1970 (based on the same Nestle-Aland critical text as are the ESV, NIV, NASB) says: “BAD COMPANY CORRUPTS GOOD MORALS.”
Well, this may be a true, popular saying, but it is NOT what God inspired to be written in this verse.
The ESV and New Jerusalem bible and now the NIV 2011 (not the previous 1984 NIV) all unite in giving us a footnote that tell us that the apostle Paul was probably quoting a popular proverb from the literary comedy called Menander's Thais!!!
I would say that "bad bibles corrupt good minds."
Matthew Henry - “Be not deceived, says he; evil communications corrupt good manners, v. 33. Possibly, some of those who SAID THAT THERE WAS NO RESURRECTION of the dead were men of loose lives, and endeavoured to countenance their vicious practices by so corrupt a principle; and had THAT SPEECH often in their mouths Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die. Now, the apostle grants that THEIR TALK was to the purpose if there was no future state. But, having confuted their principle, he now warns the Corinthians how dangerous such men's CONVERSATION must prove. He tells them that they would probably be corrupted by them, and fall in with their course of life, if they gave into their evil principles.”
Jamieson, Faussett and Brown - “Evil communications" refer to INTERCOURSE WITH THOSE WHO DENY THE RESURRECTION. Their notion seems to have been that the resurrection is merely spiritual, that sin has its seat solely in the body, and will be left behind when the soul leaves it, if, indeed, the soul survive death at all. “
John Gill - “evil communications corrupt good manners. By such as DENY THE DOCTRINE OF THE RESURRECTION, and by their reasonings about it; or by such libertines who go into the denial of it, and argue from thence in favour of their licentious course of life.”
John Calvin - “Evil communications corrupt good manners As nothing is easier than to glide into profane speculation, under the pretext of inquiring, he meets this danger, by warning them that evil communications have more effect than we might suppose, in polluting our minds and corrupting our morals… Here, therefore, Paul warns us that we must guard against EVIL COMMUNICATIONS, as we would against the most deadly poison, because, insinuating themselves secretly into our minds, they straightway corrupt our whole life. Let us, then, take notice, that nothing is more pestilential than CORRUPT DOCTRINE and PROFANE DISPUTATIONS, which draw us off, even in the smallest degree, FROM A RIGHT AND SIMPLE FAITH; for it is not without good reason that Paul exhorts us not to be deceived.”
John Trapp Complete Commentary - “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. EVIL WORDS are not wind, as most imagine, but the devil’s drivel, that leaves a foul stain upon THE SPEAKER, and often sets the like upon THE HEARER.”
Matthew Poole’s Annotations - “Do not suffer yourselves to be abused with evil and CORRUPT DISCOURSES of those philosophers amongst whom you converse, who argue from innate principles of REASON AGAINST ARTICLES OF FAITH; though you may judge that they TALK but for discourse sake, yet THEIR COMMUNICATION OR DISCOURSE is naught, and will influence men as to things of practice, and debauch men in their morals.”
The Bible Study New Testament - “Do not let THE FALSE LOGIC of the wicked fool you, ESPECIALLY ABOUT THE RAISING FROM DEATH. Your good character can be ruined by THE UNBELIEF THAT IS HIDDEN IN WHAT THEY SAY.”
John Wesley - "Be not deceived - By such PERNICIOUS COUNSELS as this... Evil communications - DISCOURSE CONTRARY TO FAITH, hope, or love, naturally tends to destroy all holiness."
Barnes Notes on the New Testament - "Be not deceived - By your FALSE TEACHERS, AND BY THEIR SMOOTH AND PLAUSIBLE ARGUMENTS. This is an exhortation. He had thus far been engaged in an argument on the subject. He now entreats them to beware lest they be deceived - a danger to which they were very liable from their circumstances. There was, doubtless, much that was plausible in THE OBJECTIONS TO THE DOCTRINE OF THE RESURRECTION; there was much subtilty and art in THEIR TEACHERS, WHO DENIED THIS DOCTRINE.”
Burton Coffman's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments: "Paul's use of it here was to warn the Corinthians against any toleration of the EVIL TEACHERS WHO WERE DENYING THE RESURRECTION; for the toleration of them was certain to have corrupted some of the church."
The King James Bible is ALWAYS right. Get used to it.
ALL of grace, believing the Book.
Will Kinney
Return to Articles
http://brandplucked.webs.com/kjbarticles.htm