1 Corinthians 15:11 (ASV)

Passage

Whether then [it be] I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 15:9 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not found vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

1 Corinthians 15:11 Whether then [it be] I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.

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

1 Corinthians 15:13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, neither hath Christ been raised:

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 10's "But by the grace of God I..." into verse 12's "Now if Christ is preached that he...", so "whether" and "preach" 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 "whether" and "preach" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.