1 Corinthians 15:13 (KJV)

Passage

But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen:

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 15:11 Therefore whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.

1 Corinthians 15:12 Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?

1 Corinthians 15:13 But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen:

1 Corinthians 15:14 And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.

1 Corinthians 15:15 Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "resurrection", "dead", "christ", and "risen". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "resurrection" and "dead", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "Now if Christ be preached that he..." into verse 14's "And if Christ be not risen then...", so "resurrection" and "dead" belong inside that flow. In 1 Corinthians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "resurrection" and "dead" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.