1 Corinthians: Structure

The first letter to the Corinthians is the second longest letter of Paul. The most important subject in the letter is the disagreement within the church.

Like all the letters of Paul 1 Corinthians begins by stating the senders, those it is sent to, a greeting and an expression of thanks. The actual letter consists of two parts:
In the first, shorter part (1 Corinthians 1:10–4:21) Paul tries to convince the Corinthians that he really is an apostle of Jesus. He also says that they must put an end to their division by living according to the way advocated by Jesus.
In the second, longer part (1 Corinthians 5:1–15:58) Paul deals with many concrete problems, including the lack of harmony within the church. After this, Paul concludes with a number of practical points (1 Corinthians 16:1-24).