1 Corinthians 9:6

Christian Standard Bible ®

Or do only Barnabas and I have no right to refrain from working?

Parallel Translations

King James Version (1611)
Or I onely and Barnabas, haue not we power to forbeare working?

King James Version
Or I only and Barnabas, have not we power to forbear working?

English Standard Version
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living?

New American Standard Bible
Or do only Barnabas and I have no right to refrain from working?

New Century Version
Are Barnabas and I the only ones who must work to earn our living?

Amplified Bible
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to stop doing manual labor [in order to support our ministry]?

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Or do only Barnabas and I not have a right to refrain from working?

Legacy Standard Bible
Or do only Barnabas and I not have authority to refrain from working?

Berean Standard Bible
Or are Barnabas and I the only apostles who must work for a living?

Contemporary English Version
Are we the only ones who have to support ourselves by working at another job?

Complete Jewish Bible
Or are Bar-Nabba and I the only ones required to go on working for our living?

Darby Translation
Or *I* alone and Barnabas, have we not a right not to work?

Easy-to-Read Version
And are Barnabas and I the only ones who must work to earn our living?

Geneva Bible (1587)
Or I only and Barnabas, haue not we power not to worke?

George Lamsa Translation
Or only I and Barnabas, have not we the right to live without working?

Good News Translation
Or are Barnabas and I the only ones who have to work for our living?

Lexham English Bible
Or do only I and Barnabas not have the right to refrain from working?

Literal Translation
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no authority to quit work?

American Standard Version
Or I only and Barnabas, have we not a right to forbear working?

Bible in Basic English
Or I only and Barnabas, have we no right to take a rest from work?

Hebrew Names Version
Or have only Bar-Nabba and I no right to not work?

International Standard Version
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living?2 Thessalonians 3:8-9;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
Or have I only, and Bar Naba, not authority to forbear from labour?

Murdock Translation
Or I only, and Barnabas, have we no right to forbear labor?

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Either only I and Barnabas haue not power this to do?

English Revised Version
Or I only and Barnabas, have we not a right to forbear working?

World English Bible
Or have only Barnabas and I no right to not work?

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Or I only and Barnabas, have we not power to forbear working?

Weymouth's New Testament
Or again, is it only Barnabas and myself who are not at liberty to give up working with our hands?

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Or Y aloone and Barnabas han not power to worche these thingis?

Update Bible Version
Or only I and Barnabas, do we not have a right to forbear working?

Webster's Bible Translation
Or I only and Barnabas, have we not power to forbear working?

New English Translation
Or do only Barnabas and I lack the right not to work?

New King James Version
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working?

New Living Translation
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have to work to support ourselves?

New Life Bible
Are Barnabas and I the only ones who should keep working for a living so we can preach?

New Revised Standard
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living?

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Or have, only I and Barnabas, not a right to forbear working?

Douay-Rheims Bible
Or I only and Barnabas, have not we power to do this?

Revised Standard Version
Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living?

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
Ether only I and Barnabas have not power this to do?

Young's Literal Translation
or only I and Barnabas, have we not authority -- not to work?

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Or haue onely I and Barnabas not power this to do?

Mace New Testament (1729)
or I and Barnabas, are we only excluded the privilege of not working?

Simplified Cowboy Version
Are Barnabas and I the only ones who have to daywork for our meals?

Contextual Overview

³My defense to those who examine me is this: ⁴Don’t we have the right to eat and drink? ⁵Don’t we have the right to be accompanied by a believing wife like the other apostles, the Lord’s brothers, and Cephas? ⁶Or do only Barnabas and I have no right to refrain from working? ⁷Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who shepherds a flock and does not drink the milk from the flock? ⁸Am I saying this from a human perspective? Doesn’t the law also say the same thing? ⁹For it is written in the law of Moses, Do not muzzle an ox while it treads out grain. Is God really concerned about oxen? ¹⁰Isn’t he really saying it for our sake? Yes, this is written for our sake, because he who plows ought to plow in hope, and he who threshes should thresh in hope of sharing the crop. ¹¹If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it too much if we reap material benefits from you? ¹²If others have this right to receive benefits from you, don’t we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right; instead, we endure everything so that we will not hinder the gospel of Christ.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Barnabas: Acts 4:36, Acts 11:22, Acts 13:1, Acts 13:2, Acts 13:50, Acts 14:12, Acts 15:36, Acts 15:37

have: 1 Corinthians 4:11, 1 Corinthians 4:12, Acts 18:3, Acts 20:34, Acts 20:35, 1 Thessalonians 2:9, 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9

Reciprocal: 2 Kings 6:2 - and take thence Nehemiah 10:36 - unto Jeremiah 20:7 - thou art John 21:3 - I go Acts 9:27 - Barnabas Acts 14:14 - the apostles 1 Corinthians 9:18 - when 2 Corinthians 11:7 - in 2 Corinthians 12:13 - I myself Galatians 2:1 - Barnabas 1 Thessalonians 2:6 - when

Cross-References

Genesis 4:14
Since you are banishing me today from the face of the earth, and I must hide from your presence and become a restless wanderer on the earth, whoever finds me will kill me.”

Genesis 5:1
This is the document containing the family records of Adam. On the day that God created man, he made him in the likeness of God;

Genesis 9:2
The fear and terror of you will be in every living creature on the earth, every bird of the sky, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are placed under your authority.

Genesis 9:3
Every creature that lives and moves will be food for you; as I gave the green plants, I have given you everything.

Genesis 9:5
And I will require a penalty for your lifeblood; I will require it from any animal and from any human; if someone murders a fellow human, I will require that person’s life.

Genesis 9:6
Whoever sheds human blood,by humans his blood will be shed,for God made humans in his image.

Genesis 9:12
And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all future generations:

Genesis 9:14
Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the bow appears in the clouds,

Genesis 9:26
He also said:

Genesis 9:27
Let God extend Japheth;let Japheth dwell in the tents of Shem;let Canaan be Shem’s slave.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Or I only and Barnabas,.... Who were for a great while companions and fellow travellers; are we alone? are we exempted from those rights and privileges, common to others?

have not we power to forbear working? that is, with their hands, at their trades and occupations, to get their living by: Paul worked at his trade, and so it seems Barnabas did likewise: Paul wrought with his hands at Corinth, in company with Aquila and Priscilla, they being tentmakers as he, Acts 18:3 and so he did in other places; he appeals for the truth of this to the elders of the church at Ephesus, Acts 20:34 and to the church of the Thessalonians, 1 Thessalonians 2:9 not but that he had a right and power to leave off business, to forbear working, and require a maintenance from those to whom he ministered; but for some reasons he chose not to make use of this his power and liberty, because he would not be chargeable to them; and lest that upon his first preaching the Gospel to them, they should think he had worldly selfish ends in view, and not the good of souls, and glory of Christ; however, he hereby lets them know, that though Barnabas and he continued to get their bread by their own hand labour, they had a right to quit their trades, and throw themselves upon them for a maintenance. The apostle seems, in this, to imitate the ancient, wise, and holy men of his nation, who taught the law freely, and took nothing for it; not that they thought it was unlawful, or that they had no right to a maintenance on account of it, but for the honour of religion, and that piety they professed; and lest the law should be thought to be made a trade of, they chose not to insist upon it d.

d Maimon. & Bartenora in Pirke Abot, c. 4. sect. 5.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Or I only and Barnabas - Paul and Barnabas had worked together as tent-makers at Corinth; Acts 18:3. From this fact it had been inferred that they “knew” that they had no claim to a support.

Power to forbear working - To abstain from labor, and to receive support as others do. The question implies a strong affirmation that they had such power. The sense is, ‘Why should I and Barnabas be regarded as having no right to support? Have we been less faithful than others? Have we done less? Have we given fewer evidences that we are sent by the Lord, or that God approves us in our work? Have we been less successful? Why then should we be singled out; and why should it be supposed that we are obliged to labor for our support? “Is there no other conceivable reason” why we should support ourselves than a consciousness that we have no right to support from the people with whom we labor?” It is evident from 1 Corinthians 9:12, that Barnabas as well as Paul relinquished his right to a support, and labored to maintain himself. And it is manifest from the whole passage, that there was some special “spleen” (“Doddridge”) against these two ministers of the gospel. What it was we know not. It might have arisen from the enmity and opposition of Judaizing teachers, who were offended at their zeal and success among the Gentiles, and who could find no other cause of complaint against them than that they chose to support themselves, and not live in idleness, or to tax the church for their support. That must have been a bad cause which was sustained by such an argument.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Corinthians 9:6. Or I only and Barnabas — Have we alone of all the apostles no right to be supported by our converts? It appears from this,

1. That the apostles did not generally support themselves by their own labour.

2. That Paul and Barnabas did thus support themselves.

Some of the others probably had not a business at which they could conveniently work; but Paul and Barnabas had a trade at which they could conveniently labour wherever they came.