1 Corinthians 12:16

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

New Century Version
The ear might say, "Because I am not an eye, I am not part of the body." But saying this would not stop the ear from being a part of the body.

New English Translation
And if the ear says, "Since I am not an eye, I am not part of the body," it does not lose its membership in the body because of that.

New Life Bible
If the ear should say, "I am not a part of the body because I am not an eye," that would not stop it from being a part of the body.

New Revised Standard
And if the ear would say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, though the ear should say - Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body, Is it, therefore, not, of the body?

Douay-Rheims Bible
And if the ear should say: Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body: Is it therefore not of the body?

Revised Standard Version
And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And if ye eare saye I am not the eye: therfore I am not of the body: is he therfore not of the body?

New King James Version
And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body?

New Living Translation
And if the ear says, "I am not part of the body because I am not an eye," would that make it any less a part of the body?

Easy-to-Read Version
The ear might say, "I am not an eye, so I don't belong to the body." But saying this would not make the ear stop being a part of the body.

Literal Translation
And if the ear says, Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body, on account of this, is it not of the body?

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And yf the eare saye: I am not the eye, therfore am I not a membre of the body, is he therfore not a membre of the body?

King James Version
And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?

Lexham English Bible
And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body, not because of this is it not a part of the body.

George Lamsa Translation
And if the ear should say, Because I am not the eye, I am not a part of the body; is it therefore not a member of the body?

Good News Translation
And if the ear were to say, "Because I am not an eye, I don't belong to the body," that would not keep it from being a part of the body.

Christian Standard Bible®
And if the ear should say, "Because I'm not an eye, I don't belong to the body," in spite of this it still belongs to the body.

Hebrew Names Version
If the ear would say, "Because I'm not the eye, I'm not part of the body," it's not therefore not part of the body.

International Standard Version
And if the ear says, "Since I'm not an eye, I'm not part of the body," that does not make it any less a part of the body, does it?

English Standard Version
And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And if the eare would say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body?

King James Version (1611)
And if the eare shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body: is it therefore not of the body?

English Revised Version
And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; it is not therefore not of the body.

Berean Standard Bible
And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body.

Contemporary English Version
Or suppose an ear says, "I'm not an eye, and so I'm not part of the body." Wouldn't the ear still belong to the body?

Amplified Bible
If the ear says, "Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body," is it not on the contrary still a part of the body?

American Standard Version
And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; it is not therefore not of the body.

Bible in Basic English
And if the ear says, Because I am not the eye, I am not a part of the body; it is a part of the body all the same.

Complete Jewish Bible
And if the ear says, "I'm not an eye, so I'm not part of the body," that doesn't make it stop being part of the body.

Darby Translation
And if the ear say, Because I am not an eye I am not of the body, is it on account of this not indeed of the body?

Update Bible Version
And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; it is not therefore not of the body.

Etheridge Translation
And if the ear should say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body itself, would it therefore not be of the body itself?

Murdock Translation
Or if the ear should say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it, on that account, not of the body?

Weymouth's New Testament
Or were the ear to say, "Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body," that would not make it any the less a part of the body.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And if the ere seith, For Y am not the iye, Y am not of the bodi; not therfor it is not of the bodi.

Young's Literal Translation
and if the ear may say, `Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body;' it is not, because of this, not of the body?

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And yf the eare woulde say, because I am not the eye, I am not of the body: is it therfore not of the body?

Mace New Testament (1729)
and if the ear should say, "because I am not the eye, I am not of the body;" is it therefore not of the body?

New American Standard Bible
And if the ear says, "Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body," it is not for this reason any less a part of the body.

Webster's Bible Translation
And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?

World English Bible
If the ear would say, "Because I'm not the eye, I'm not part of the body," it's not therefore not part of the body.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And if the ear should say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body?

Simplified Cowboy Version
And just because you can't see out of your ear doesn't mean it's not just as useful to the body.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
And if the ear says, "Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body," it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body.

Legacy Standard Bible
And if the ear says, "Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body," it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body.

Contextual Overview

¹²You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you're still one body. It's exactly the same with Christ. By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.) Each of us is now a part of his resurrection body, refreshed and sustained at one fountain—his Spirit—where we all come to drink. The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. We need something larger, more comprehensive. ¹⁴I want you to think about how all this makes you more significant, not less. A body isn't just a single part blown up into something huge. It's all the different-but-similar parts arranged and functioning together. If Foot said, "I'm not elegant like Hand, embellished with rings; I guess I don't belong to this body," would that make it so? If Ear said, "I'm not beautiful like Eye, limpid and expressive; I don't deserve a place on the head," would you want to remove it from the body? If the body was all eye, how could it hear? If all ear, how could it smell? As it is, we see that God has carefully placed each part of the body right where he wanted it. ¹⁹But I also want you to think about how this keeps your significance from getting blown up into self-importance. For no matter how significant you are, it is only because of what you are a part of. An enormous eye or a gigantic hand wouldn't be a body, but a monster. What we have is one body with many parts, each its proper size and in its proper place. No part is important on its own. Can you imagine Eye telling Hand, "Get lost; I don't need you"? Or, Head telling Foot, "You're fired; your job has been phased out"? As a matter of fact, in practice it works the other way—the "lower" the part, the more basic, and therefore necessary. You can live without an eye, for instance, but not without a stomach. When it's a part of your own body you are concerned with, it makes no difference whether the part is visible or clothed, higher or lower. You give it dignity and honor just as it is, without comparisons. If anything, you have more concern for the lower parts than the higher. If you had to choose, wouldn't you prefer good digestion to full-bodied hair? ²⁵The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives together as a church: every part dependent on every other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don't, the parts we see and the parts we don't. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

is it: 1 Corinthians 12:16, 1 Corinthians 12:22, Romans 12:3, Romans 12:10, Philippians 2:3

Reciprocal: 1 Corinthians 13:1 - I speak

Cross-References

Genesis 12:14
When Abram arrived in Egypt, the Egyptians took one look and saw that his wife was stunningly beautiful. Pharaoh's princes raved over her to Pharaoh. She was taken to live with Pharaoh.

Genesis 20:14
Then Abimelech gave Sarah back to Abraham, and along with her sent sheep and cattle and servants, both male and female. He said, "My land is open to you; live wherever you wish."

Job 42:12
God blessed Job's later life even more than his earlier life. He ended up with fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand teams of oxen, and one thousand donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters. He named the first daughter Dove, the second, Cinnamon, and the third, Darkeyes. There was not a woman in that country as beautiful as Job's daughters. Their father treated them as equals with their brothers, providing the same inheritance.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And if the ear shall say,.... The organ that receives sounds, and can distinguish them, and in which member is placed the sense of hearing; and may design such as are hearers of the word of God, not merely externally, but internally; who hear so as to love, savour, and relish it; so as to understand and believe it, and to act in compliance with it; and distinguish it for themselves, though they may not be able to give a distinct account of it to others, or instruct others in it:

because I am not the eye: the organ of seeing, in which is seated the visive faculty, and which receives light, and uses it for the good of the body, whose superintendent it is; and may be expressive of the ministers of the Gospel, who are that to the church, as eyes are to the body; they are the light of the world, have a clear insight into the doctrines of the Gospel, and communicate their light to others; they are set in the highest place in the church, and as watchmen and overseers there, to instruct; guide, and direct the members of it:

I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body? it certainly is; and so such as are only hearers of the Gospel, being affectionate, believing, understanding and fruitful hearers; though they have not such large knowledge and clear light, so as to be capable of overseeing and instructing others, yet are true and useful members of the church, are highly respected by Christ the head, and to be had in esteem by their fellow members, who may be superior to them.