1 Corinthians 1:28 means that God deliberately picks people and things the world considers unimportant, weak, or nonexistent, so that the powerful and self-assured are shown to be empty by comparison. Paul wrote it to the church in Corinth, a congregation made up largely of people with little status, who needed to understand why God’s way of working looked so unlike the world’s.
And God chose the lowly things of the world, and the things that are despised, and the things that are not, that he might bring to nothing the things that are…
1 Corinthians 1:28 (WEB)
What 1 Corinthians 1:28 Means
Paul begins with “God chose.” The verb points to a deliberate decision, not an accident of circumstance. God is the one choosing, and the choice runs against ordinary expectations about where influence and value come from. When a community decides who matters, it usually looks for education, money, family standing, or strength. Paul says God starts somewhere else.
The three phrases in the middle, “the lowly things,” “the things that are despised,” and “the things that are not,” describe a descending scale. Lowly things are humble or insignificant. Despised things are ones people actively look down on. “The things that are not” goes furthest: it refers to things that count for nothing at all in the eyes of the world. Paul piles up these words to make sure no category of unimpressive person or thing is left out.
The purpose clause at the end, “that he might bring to nothing the things that are,” tells us why God makes this choice. The aim is not to reward the lowly for being lowly, but to reduce to nothing the pride and self-reliance of those who think they are important. The verse does not promise that every humble person will become prominent in this life, and it does not say that wealth or learning are sinful. It describes a pattern in how God works and the reason behind it.
The Context of 1 Corinthians 1:28
First Corinthians was written by the apostle Paul, traditionally dated to the mid-50s AD, to a church in the Greek city of Corinth. Corinth was a busy commercial port known for its ambition and rivalry, and the church there was dividing into factions, some claiming allegiance to particular teachers and some priding themselves on wisdom and spiritual sophistication. Paul’s audience included many believers of modest background, and he confronts their tendency to measure themselves by worldly standards.
The verses just before and after set the frame. Verse 25 says God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and verse 26 reminds the believers that “not many” of them were wise, powerful, or noble by worldly measures. Verse 27 gives the first half of the pattern, God choosing the foolish and the weak. Verse 28 extends it to the lowly, the despised, and the nonexistent. Verse 29 then states the goal directly: “that no flesh should boast before God.” Reading the verse inside this paragraph shows that it is less a statement about social rank than a warning against human boasting.
Key Phrases in 1 Corinthians 1:28
1 Corinthians 1:27
But God chose the foolish things of the world that he might put to shame those who are wise. God chose the weak things of the world, that he might put to shame the things that are strong…
(WEB)
This verse comes just before 1 Corinthians 1:28 and sets up the same pattern with the foolish and the weak. Reading the two together shows that Paul is building a single argument about God choosing what the world rejects.
2 Corinthians 12:9
He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Most gladly therefore I will rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest on me.
(WEB)
Here Paul records God telling him that divine power is made perfect in weakness. It echoes the same theme found in 1 Corinthians 1:28, that God’s strength is displayed through what looks insufficient to the world.
A Short Prayer From 1 Corinthians 1:28
Lord, you have chosen what the world sets aside, and I am grateful that my worth does not rest on my standing among people. Free me from the need to impress and from the quiet pride that tells me I am more than I am. Teach me to honor those the world overlooks, and to trust that you can do great things through ordinary lives. Keep me humble before you, and let my boasting be only in your goodness. Amen.
