Bible Strands
1 Corinthians 10:16
Is not the cup of blessing that we bless a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Paul writes to the Corinthian church while addressing their questions about pagan temple feasts, using the Lord’s Supper as a counterpoint to idolatrous participation.
The words — The passage hinges on κοινωνία (koinōnia), meaning participation or sharing, and εὐλογία (eulogia), meaning blessing, to define the cup and bread.
The thread — The cup and bread motif appears in the Last Supper accounts at Matthew 26:26 and 1 Corinthians 11:23, and in the early church’s regular practice at Acts 2:42.
Why it lands — The text states that blessing the cup and breaking the bread constitutes a participation in Christ’s blood and body, which requires readers to assess their own table against the demand for communal unity and exclusive allegiance to God.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
Cross-references
- Matthew 26:26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, spoke a blessing and broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is My body.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread,
- Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
- Hebrews 3:14 We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly to the end the assurance we had at first.
- John 6:53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man, you have no life in you.
- 1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
- Luke 22:19 And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
- Acts 2:46 With one accord they continued to meet daily in the temple courts and to break bread from house to house, sharing their meals with gladness and sincerity of heart,
- 1 John 1:3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And this fellowship of ours is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.
- Mark 14:22 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, spoke a blessing and broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take it; this is My body.”