1 My brothers, here is something you should know. Long ago, all our fathers were led by the cloud of God over them. They all went through the Red Sea.
2 It was as if they were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
3 They all ate the same food from the Spirit.
4 They all drank the same water sent by the Spirit. The water they drank came from a Rock of the Spirit which went with them. That Rock was Christ.
5 But God was not pleased with most of them. They died in the wilderness.
6 This teaches us not to want wrong things as they did.
7 Do not worship idols, as some of them did. The holy writings say, The people sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up and danced.
8 We must not use sex the wrong way as some of them did. Twenty-three thousand people died in one day!
9 We must not test the Lord, as some of them did. They were bitten by bad snakes and died!
10 Do not grumble, as some of them did. They were killed by the Angel of Death!
11 These things happened to them to teach other people. They were written in the holy writings to teach us who are living in the last days of the world.
12 Therefore, when a person thinks, I am strong; I can stand, let that person be careful, or he will fall.
13 No testing has come to you that other people do not have. But God will not fail you. He will not allow the testing to be too hard for you. No. When the testing comes, God will make a way out for you, so that you can go through the testing.
14 So then, my dear brothers, do not worship idols.
15 I talk to you as people with good sense. Decide for yourselves about what I say.
16 We ask God to bless the cup at the Lords supper. When we drink from this cup it means that the blood of Christ is for us all. We break the bread. When we eat this bread, it means that the body of Christ is for us all.
17 The bread is all one loaf. In the same way, we are many people but we are one body. We all eat from the same loaf.
18 See what the Jews do. Those who eat the sacrifices all eat things that are sacrificed.
19 What do I mean by saying this? Is the food that has been given to idols really something holy? Or is an idol really something like God?
20 No. What I mean is this. Those people give the food to bad spirits and not to God. I do not want you to have anything to do with bad spirits.
21 You cannot drink from the cup of the Lord and from the cup of bad spirits. You cannot eat food at the table of the Lord and at the table of bad spirits.
22 Do we want to make the Lord jealous? Are we stronger than he is? No!
23 We are free to do anything we want to do. Yes, but some things do not make people better. It is better if we do not do such things.
24 A person must not think only of himself. But he should think of the other person as well.
25 Eat any meat that is sold at the market. Do not ask any questions about it because you think, Is it wrong to eat it?
26 The holy writings say, The earth belongs to the Lord and everything that is in it.
27 If one who is not a believer asks you to come and eat, if you want to go, then eat the food he gives you. Do not ask any questions about it because you fear it might be wrong to eat it.
28 But if anyone says to you, This food has been given to an idol, then do not eat it. Do not eat it because of the one who told you and because it might seem wrong. I mean it might seem wrong, not to you, but to him.
29 Since I am free, is it wrong for me to eat just because someone else thinks it is?
30 I thank God for my food. So why should anyone say it is wrong for me to eat what I thank God for?
31 So, whether you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do everything to bring praise to God.
32 Do nothing that will make Jews, or Greeks, or those who belong to the church of God, turn away from God.
33 I, also, try to please everyone in all I do. I do not think of what will be good for me, but I think of what will be good for many people. I want them to be saved.