1 Corinthians 10:20 (WEB)

Passage

But I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God, and I don’t desire that you would have fellowship with demons.

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 10:18 Consider Israel according to the flesh. Don’t those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar?

1 Corinthians 10:19 What am I saying then? That a thing sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything?

1 Corinthians 10:20 But I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God, and I don’t desire that you would have fellowship with demons.

1 Corinthians 10:21 You can’t both drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You can’t both partake of the table of the Lord, and of the table of demons.

1 Corinthians 10:22 Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "things", "gentiles", "sacrifice", "demons", "desire", and "fellowship". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "things" and "gentiles", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "What am I saying then That a..." into verse 21's "You can t both drink the cup...", so "things" and "gentiles" 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 "things" and "gentiles" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.